Highly pathogenic H5N5 bird flu found in three Icelandic regions

Highly pathogenic H5N5 bird flu has been detected in wild birds in northern, southwestern and southeastern Iceland, mbl.is reported, citing the Food and Veterinary Authority.

The authority said it had received numerous reports in recent weeks of sick and dead wild birds across the country. Samples collected from birds between mid-September and October were tested by the University of Iceland’s Keldur pathology research station. Results from samples taken in other regions are still pending.

The latest findings are Iceland’s first detections of highly pathogenic bird flu since spring, when it was found in a pink-footed goose near Höfn in Hornafjörður in April.

The first positive samples this autumn came from birds found in mid-September in Blönduós, Skagaströnd and near Sauðárkrókur: a black-headed gull, a great skua, two great black-backed gulls and a lesser black-backed gull. Four birds in Húsavík and birds found near Jökulsárlón also tested positive. The latest results confirmed infection in eight gulls found dead in Sandgerði on the Reykjanes peninsula.

The authority said the number of reports suggests the virus is spreading again among wild birds, although its full extent is not yet known. It will continue to monitor the situation and publish further findings. An uncertainty alert remains in place over the increased risk of infection spreading from wild birds to poultry and other captive birds.