Massive Die-Off Hits Southern Elephant Seals on Heard Island. A devastating outbreak of the highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza virus has claimed the lives of approximately 13,000 southern elephant seal pups on Heard Island, a remote nature reserve in the southern Indian Ocean. The unprecedented die-off has sent shockwaves through the scientific community, with researchers scrambling to understand the cause and spread of the disease. As one of the largest breeding colonies of southern elephant seals in the world, the impact of this outbreak is likely to have far-reaching consequences for the global population of these majestic creatures.
Scientists say 13,000 southern elephant seal pups on Heard Island have died of the H5N1 strain.
