Jemma Geoghegan: Otago University evolutionary virologist on the first case of H5N1 bird flu reaching New Zealand

No surprises bird flu has reached our shores, as New Zealanders are asked to keep an eye out for transmission escalation.  

A sub-Antarctic seabird found on Wellington's Petone Beach last week has tested positive for the H5N1 strain.  

Officials say symptoms to look out for in birds include paralysis, shaking, respiratory issues, or diarrhoea.  

Otago University evolutionary virologist Jemma Geoghegan told Ryan Bridge there's no evidence of widespread transmission yet.  

She says once it starts spreading between birds on the mainland, that's when there's a risk the virus could get into poultry sheds and concerns would grow. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
So bird flu's landed in New Zealand, one sick bird
on a beach in Potoni. The H five strain is
the one that we're talking about. Officials saying, yeah, there
is a risk to poultry and beyond, but not yet.

Speaker 2 (00:11):
It is not a human health issue. Also, a food
safety is as long as you're cooking your chicken, meat
and eggs as you're supposed to do. You know, I
feel that we are very well prepared for this disease
arriving here. We are effectively one of the last places
in the world to get it.

Speaker 1 (00:26):
Jim McGegan, University of Otago, Professor evolutionary virologists with us
this morning. Jentlemen, good morning, good morning. Now tell me
I don't want people to freak out about stuff. And
I'm seeing a headline from a news article right now
that says newly arrived bird flu could wipe out New
Zealand's endangered species expert warms. Is that overblowing it?

Speaker 3 (00:49):
You know, this is a hugely significant event that we
have no detected each five and one bird flu in
New Zealand. It's not surprising that it is here now,
given that it's spread around the world and the recent
weeks of being detected in Australia. It is, you know,
a very severe infection when it comes to wildlife and poultry,

(01:13):
and there are some species in New Zealand of birds
that are already on the brink of extinction. So I
wouldn't say it's overblowing it saying that, you know, these
these birds are already threatened and a virus like this
could be catastrophic for them.

Speaker 1 (01:30):
Okay, we're vaccinating them though, aren't we the breeding ones?

Speaker 3 (01:34):
Apparently that's yeah. So the Department of Conservation has carried
out some vaccine trials over the last two years, seeing
how effective they are on a number of key species
that are native endemic here that are you know, very
well managed, and so over the past few weeks since
the arrival of this virus in Australia, they have expanded

(01:59):
that program and so have vaccinated key species that are
already highly managed. So it's quite relatively feasible for them
to do that with with animals they can catch. Now,
there are many different wildlife species that's really hard to vaccinate,
as you can imagine, So.

Speaker 1 (02:19):
While they're can get them, all can't get them. Are
with poultry is a big business two point two billion dollars.
In Australia, they have had fins of single birds kind
of like the one we had in Battoni, but it
hasn't led to mass mortalities over there. What are you
looking for? What's the next thing you look at and go, oh,
it's escalating.

Speaker 3 (02:38):
Yeah, you know, we've now seen some in Australia. We've
seen sort of birds wash up on beaches and that's
kind of what the pattern we're seeing here now. Once
it starts spreading in New Zealand on the mainland between
birds here, that's when it's escalating, and that's when there's
a risk that potentially virus could get into poultry sheds

(03:03):
and farming. So that's the sort of point where you'd
be a bit more concerned about.

Speaker 1 (03:09):
This the next step. Jim, I appreciate the update. Thank
you very much for being with me this morning. Jim mcgigan,
University of Otager Professor, evolutionary virologist. For more from early
edition with Ryan Bridge, Listen live to news Talks it'd
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