Avian Flu Reaches Antarctica: Jena Researchers Concerned About Penguin Populations
Researchers from Jena have documented the highly pathogenic H5N1 bird flu on King George Island. After discovering over 50 dead birds, experts from the Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena warn of a devastating impact on the region’s dense penguin colonies. As migratory birds carry the virus to the remote South, the fragile Antarctic ecosystem faces a significant threat of local extinctions.