Bird flu has reached Aotearoa. If you volunteer, walk the tracks, keep backyard chooks or simply love the birdlife, here is what you need to know and what you can do.
The short version
- Keep your distance: Do not touch, move or collect sick or dead birds. Leave them where they are.
- Keep pets away: Dogs on a leash near wild birds. Cats inside.
- Keep clean: Wash hands with soap after being outdoors. Clean boots and gear between sites, same as we do for kauri dieback.
- Report three or more: Three or more sick or dead wild birds in one group means call 0800 80 99 66 or report at report.mpi.govt.nz. Do not handle them.
- Plant, do not feed: Feeding stations crowd birds together and spread disease. Native plants feed them safely.
What bird flu actually is
Avian influenza is a highly contagious virus that mainly affects birds, though it can spread to mammals including people. There are two broad types:
- Low pathogenicity (LPAI) causes few or no signs of illness. It has been present in New Zealand's wild birds for years and MPI tests around 2,000 wild bird samples annually for it.
- High pathogenicity (HPAI) causes severe illness and high death rates. The strain the world is watching is H5N1 clade 2.3.4.4b.
That H5 strain emerged in the northern hemisphere in 2020 and did something previous strains had not. It established itself permanently in wild bird populations and travelled with them. By 2023, it had reached the southern hemisphere. New Zealand had its first detection of H5 bird flu in a single migratory seabird on 15 July 2026.
It infects a far wider range of species than earlier strains, and has spilled over into more than 60 species of mammal.
There is no cure. Once it is in a wild population, the only realistic response is to let wildlife recover naturally.
Why this matters so much here
New Zealand's birds evolved in isolation. Many are found nowhere else on Earth, many exist in small populations, and many are already under real pressure because of introduced predators and habitat loss. A disease that arrives from the sky, carried by birds that cross oceans, bypasses every fence and trap line.
Species that nest in dense colonies are most exposed. Gulls, gannets and terns gather in their thousands, exactly the conditions in which one infected bird's droppings can seed an outbreak. Overseas, colonial seabirds have taken devastating losses.
There is also a real emotional cost. Communities in outbreak zones overseas have faced beaches and reserves scattered with dead birds. For people who have spent years restoring a place, that is genuinely distressing. It is worth naming that now rather than pretending otherwise.
Protecting our most endangered species
You cannot vaccinate a nation's wild birds. But you can protect a core breeding population so that a species does not vanish entirely.
The Department of Conservation is vaccinating 300 core breeding birds across five of our most endangered species: kākāpō, takahē, tūturuatu, kakī and kākāriki karaka. These species were selected because of their critical conservation status and because they rely on captive breeding, which makes it practical to deliver the full two-dose course.
The most useful thing you can do is the thing you were already doing
We cannot stop a virus arriving on the wings of a migratory bird. What we can do is make sure that when birds get here, they arrive somewhere worth surviving in.
Healthy, connected, predator-free habitat gives populations the resilience to absorb a hit and rebuild. Every hour spent planting, weeding, trapping and pulling rubbish out of a stream is an hour spent building that resilience.
Your own health
Human infection is rare and normally requires close, sustained contact with sick animals. Person-to-person transmission is very unlikely. Surveillance teams are actively watching for human cases and for changes in the virus, and if an outbreak occurs, public health teams will manage anyone with close exposure to infected animals.
Following the standard advice, including PPE where it is required, gives you good protection.
Where to get the latest
This situation can change. Always check the official sources:
- MPI bird flu information
- Report sick or dead birds: 0800 80 99 66 or report.mpi.govt.nz
- DOC wildlife health
- Health New Zealand | Te Whatu Ora