2024-01-04 22:50:49
A polar bear died of avian flu in October in Utqiagvik (United States). This is a first in the world. The animal might have been contaminated following ingesting dead birds themselves carrying the virus. .
This case has never happened before. A polar bear died in October from the H5N1 virus, more commonly known as avian flu. Very contagious among birds, it more rarely affects other types of species, but can sometimes contaminate mammals. However, never has a polar bear died following a transmission of this type. The carcass of the animal was found near Utqiagvik, in the far north of Alaska, in the United States.
“A scenario that we have not faced in the past”
The discovery of the reason for the carnivore’s death occurred following several analyzes of its skin, reports l’Alaska Beacon, a local newspaper in the region. “What we are facing today is a scenario that we have not faced in the past, Andy Ramey, a wildlife geneticist at the US Geological Survey, explains to the media. And so there is no manual.” According to initial research carried out by scientists, the polar bear may have been contaminated following consuming birds themselves carrying the virus.
“If a bird dies from this disease, the virus can persist for a while in the environment, especially if it is cold.”, says Bob Gerlach, the Alaska State Veterinarian, still atAlaska Beacon. Since the formation of a particularly ferocious variant of avian flu in 2021, millions of birds have died from the disease, and certain mammals have also been affected, much more episodically. In the region, brown and black bears have already died from this virus in Alaska. On the other side of the globe, in Antarctica, elephant seals and sea lions were also found dead during this epizootic, the equivalent of an animal epidemic.
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“When it comes to a large, charismatic species like the polar bear, people suddenly sit up and listen, explains professor of conservation biology at the University of East Anglia Diana Bell, interviewed by The Guardian. At least, I hope they do.“In Alaska, specialists also point out another risk: that of the region’s food security. In this area, many residents are used to hunting wild birds.”Clearly, fewer birds might equate to less availability, and also less population resilience to factors such as disease or climate change“, notes Andy Ramey, in the same interview.
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