SYDNEY (Reuters) -Australia said on Friday that scientists had seen symptoms consistent with the destructive H5 bird flu strain on its sub-Antarctic Heard Island in the Southern Ocean, after unusual levels of deaths of elephant seals.

“At this stage it is not a confirmed detection … seeing signs consistent with H5 bird flu in wildlife on Heard Island is not unexpected,” the Agriculture department said in a statement.

(Reporting by Renju Jose in Sydney; Editing by Leslie Adler)

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