Catastrophic mortality of southern elephant seals caused by H5N1 avian influenza

Abstract

We report on the first outbreak of high pathogenicity H5N1 avian influenza, causing extreme mortality in the southern elephant seal, Mirounga leonina, at Península Valdés (PV) and nearby areas, in Argentina. The virus was con-firmed by the Argentine Government Animal Health Service (SENASA) on samples collected from elephant seals at PV. Findings were reported by the national authorities to the World Organisation for Animal Health and are available through the World Animal Health Information System under event ID 5189 (specifically, outbreaks OB_126883 and OB_124986).