Wildlife officials in Alaska have confirmed the first known case of a polar bear that died from avian flu — highlighting growing concerns about the H5N1 strain’s potential spread among northern mammals.
Dr. Robert Gerlach, Alaska’s state veterinarian, said the young bear’s carcass was recently found by a biologist working in the state’s remote North Slope region. Swab samples from the dead animal confirmed that it had been infected with the highly pathenogenic H5N1 strain.
“We have had birds detected with the avian influenza virus in that area. So we’re making the assumption that the bear had come up onto land and had probably
