Bird flu hits Australian duck farms and enters quarantine zone

CANBERRA - Highly pathogenic bird flu has been found at a duck farm near Melbourne, close to five poultry farms where the virus has spread. The Australian state government of Victoria said the duck farm was within a quarantine zone set up around other affected facilities and the government said the infection in the ducks was not surprising. Authorities are trying to contain an outbreak of two types of bird flu near Melbourne, namely the H7N3 strain at four poultry farms and a duck farm, and the H7N9 strain at a poultry farm about 130 km to the southwest. Both strains are not the H5N1 strain that has infected billions of wild and farmed animals globally, disrupting food supply chains and raising concerns about transmission to humans. “Tests have confirmed the high pathogenicity of the H7N3 strain in commercial duck farms,” said the Victorian agriculture department in a statement on Thursday (13/6/2024). “All ducks on the property will be humanely disposed of under veterinary ...