Australian officials vaccinate penguins as El Niño threatens bird flu spread

Every evening, thousands of little penguins on Phillip Island perform a nightly march from the sea to their burrows, creating conditions that can spread avian influenza quickly. With climate models warning of an unusually warm and arid summer driven by a strong El Niño, officials in Victoria have launched a crisis response that includes vaccinating a segment of the wild penguin population. The vaccine program is in its early stages and has not previously been applied to free-living birds, according to biodiversity specialist Darren Grover of WWF.

He cautions that while success is uncertain, any protection could prevent a massive loss of the colony and reduce spill-over risk to other endemic animals such as dingoes and Tasmanian devils. The move comes amid broader concerns that climate-induced heat and drought may intensify disease transmission across ecosystems.