Norway reports Europe’s first case of bird flu in a polar bear

Norwegian authorities on Tuesday announced that bird flu has been documented in a polar bear for the first time in Europe, in the Svalbard region in the Arctic. The H5N5 variant of the virus was detected in samples taken from a male bear about one year old and a walrus found dead in mid-May on the icy archipelago, around 1,000km (600 miles) from the North Pole, the Norwegian Veterinary Institute said. “The results are part of a trend in which highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses are...

By Agence France-Presse

Bird flu detected in dead Arctic polar bear in European first

A dead walrus from the same region was also infected with bird flu

By Anna Ringstrom

Norway Reports Europe's 1st Case Of Bird Flu In A Polar Bear

Norwegian authorities on Tuesday announced that avian influenza has been documented in a polar bear for the first time in Europe, in the Svalbard region in the Arctic.

Bird flu found in polar bear in Europe for first time

Bird flu has been detected in a dead polar bear in the Arctic Svalbard archipelago, the first time the virus has been found in the species in Europe, a Norwegian government agency said on Tuesday. The Norwegian Veterinary Institute said in a statement it had also detected bird flu in a dead walrus on Svalbard, […]