The wildlife of Svalbard, this Norwegian archipelago in the Arctic, is not spared from bird flu. A walrus that died during the summer of 2023 would have succumbed, which constitutes the first recorded case in this mammal. A sample taken from the walrus lying on the island of Hopen, after analysis in a German laboratory, established that the animal had been contaminated by the virus, Christian Lydersen, a researcher at the Norwegian Polar Institute.
“This is the first time that avian flu has been recorded in a walrus,” he insisted. The sample collected was too small to determine whether it was the H5N1 or H5N8 subtype.
“Several walruses could be affected”
Half a dozen dead walruses were reported last year on Svalbard, located a thousand kilometers from the North Pole. “It is not unlikely that some of them also contracted avian flu,” notes Christian Lydersen.
Walruses, whose weight can reach up to two tonnes, feed mainly on molluscs, shellfish and crustaceans but also, occasionally, on seabirds. The researcher insisted on the importance of monitoring the situation, as walruses tend to group together as the sea ice begins to melt as the summer period approaches.
Marine mammals at risk
There are also risks of contamination for polar bears if they were to feast on the carcass of an infected walrus, Mr. Lydersen stressed. The avian flu epidemic has been wreaking havoc again since 2020. It has already caused the death of a polar bear in Alaska, according to American authorities, and hundreds of thousands of marine mammals have perished because of this virus in South America. , according to the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research.
AFP
