A walrus dies of bird flu in the Arctic – a first for this mammal species

A sample taken from a walrus lying on an island in Norway, after analysis in a German laboratory, determined that the animal was infected with the virus.

A walrus found dead last summer on Norway’s Svalbard Arctic archipelago died of bird flu, Christian Lydersen, a researcher at the Norwegian Polar Institute, said Monday. “This is the first time avian influenza has been recorded in a walrus,” he insisted.

The sample collected was too small to determine whether it was the H5N1 or H5N8 subtype. Last year, half a dozen walruses were reported dead on Spitsbergen, located 1,000 kilometers from the North Pole.

“It is likely that some of them also became infected with bird flu,” said Christian Lydersen.

Are polar bears infected?

Walruses, which can weigh up to two tons, feed mainly on molluscs, molluscs and crustaceans, but sometimes on seabirds.

The researcher insisted it was important to monitor the situation as walruses tend to cluster together as sea ice begins to melt as summer approaches.

Christian Lydersen emphasized that polar bears also risk becoming infected if they have to feast on the carcass of an infected walrus. The bird flu epidemic is wreaking havoc again in 2020.

According to American authorities, it has already caused the death of a polar bear in Alaska, and according to the Scientific Committee for Antarctic Research, hundreds of thousands of marine mammals in South America have died due to this virus.