Australia's Tasmania state confirms 1st bird flu case

The Australian island state of Tasmania on Thursday confirmed its first case of the deadly H5N1 bird flu, which has already affected wildlife across five other states, local media reported.

A brown skua found on the northwest coast of Tasmania was confirmed to have had the virus following testing, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported.

It makes Tasmania the sixth and final Australian state to report a case of H5N1, which was first detected in Western Australia in June.

The Department of Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania said the first detection was a single case and, at this stage, was not considered an outbreak.

Department Secretary Jason Jacobi said it was "inevitable" that the virus would arrive in the state.

Brown skuas are large predatory seabirds native to Tasmania that breed on Antarctic and sub-Antarctic islands.

They are often found in coastal areas and have been known to feed in large flocks on carcasses.

The government said it had completed aerial surveys of more than 980 kilometers of Tasmania's coastline, including Tasmanian islands that are home to seal and seabird colonies, as part of its early detection plan.