Victorian officials expand aerial and citizen monitoring for H5N1 bird flu

Victorian authorities have stepped up surveillance for the H5N1 strain of bird flu after detections in Western Australia, New South Wales and South Australia. Officials are using a helicopter fitted with video and infrared equipment to scan 250 to 300 kilometres of coastline daily.

A positive case was confirmed just across the Victorian border in Robe, about 200 kilometres from the state's only mainland gannet colony at Point Danger. Local volunteers have been asked to watch for signs of illness or death among the roughly 300 nesting seabirds.

Monitoring efforts The Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action said staff can radio ground crews immediately if anything unusual is spotted from the air. Follow-up testing or sampling can then occur at the site. Chief biodiversity officer James Todd said the aerial data allows faster response to potential outbreaks.

Chief veterinary officer Graeme Cook noted that the new variant behaves differently from the H7 strain that previously affected poultry farms.

Public role Residents who find dead or sick mammals or seabirds are asked to contact the department. Officials said early detection depends on reports from people already observing wildlife along the coast. A local volunteer at the gannet colony said constant monitoring by residents fills gaps that government teams cannot cover alone.

Overseas studies have shown some gannet populations may take until 2041 to recover from similar outbreaks.