A vicious disease strikes a new continent with 1000 seals and sea lions dead

A highly virulent strain of avian flu has made its way to Rio Grande do Sul, a state located on the southern coast of Brazil, decimating the local coastal fauna. Dead sea mammals, like seals and sea lions, already number in the thousands, falling victim to this lethal epidemic.

This is the first incident of such magnitude in South America's history. Never before has an infection of this scale plagued the populations of these marine animals.

Victim marine mammals are either dying or found writhing on beaches, as the virus primarily attacks their nervous system. Silvina Botta, an oceanographer from the Federal University in Rio Grande (FURG), stated that the deceased animals should be either buried or burned swiftly to minimize the risk of infecting humans and other animals.

The Ministry of Agriculture assures that from Brazil's first report on the Avian Flu (HPAI) in wild birds in May, certain preventive measures were initiated that successfully averted an outbreak on commercial poultry farms. Thus, there was no need to place a ban on their exports. An embargo on the poultry trade would have had devastating consequences, seeing as Brazil is the world's leading exporter of chicken.

However, it has emerged that other species have not remained unaffected by the virus. Dead marine birds, porpoises, and penguins have been found, and there is now a clear tie established between the mass deaths of seals and sea lions in Rio Grande do Sul and the HPAI epidemic.

The disease continues to wreak havoc in three cities within the state. The infection in marine mammals possibly originated in Peru and then swept around the South American continent, affecting wild animals in Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, and now in Brazil.

The Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture has reported 148 HPAI outbreaks in the country, the majority of which are coastal. Efforts are in place to prevent further spread of the virus.

Avian flu is a menace to every continent. In Europe and the United States, it has resulted in the culling of hundreds of millions of domesticated animals.