OSLO: The first case of a walrus dying from bird flu has been detected on one of Norway’s Arctic islands, a researcher said on Monday.

The walrus was found last year on Hopen island in the Svalbard archipelago, Christian Lydersen, a researcher at the Norwegian Polar Institute, said.

Tests carried out by a German laboratory revealed the presence of bird flu, Lydersen said. The sample was too small to determine whether it was the H5N1 or the H5N8 strain.

“It is the first time that bird flu has been recorded in a walrus,” Lydersen said.

Six dead walrus were found last year in the Svalbard islands, about 1,000 kilometres from the North Pole and halfway between mainland Norway and the North Pole.

Lydersen said it was “not improbable” that some of them had bird flu.

Walrus, which can grow to a weight of two tonnes, eat mainly fish and shellfish, but sometimes also consume marine birds.

Lydersen said it was important to monitor developments as walrus tend to group together in summer months when the ice flow melts.

There could also be a risk from a polar bear eating an infected walrus corpse.

Bird flu has taken a growing toll on farm animals since 2020.

Published in Dawn, April 30th, 2024