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STOCKHOLM, May 19 (Reuters) - Bird flu has been detected in a dead polar bear in the Arctic Svalbard archipelago, the first time the virus has been found in the species in Europe, a Norwegian government agency said on Tuesday.
The Norwegian Veterinary Institute said in a statement it had also detected bird flu in a dead walrus on Svalbard, which is roughly halfway between the North Pole and mainland Europe.
"The findings are part of a trend where highly pathogenic avian influenza virus is increasingly being detected in mammals in Europe," it said.
"At the same time, the virus has spread to new areas in recent years, including the Arctic, where it may have consequences for vulnerable populations and ecosystems."
The global spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza has alarmed governments and poultry producers after devastating flocks in recent years, disrupting supplies, driving up food prices and raising the risk of human transmission.
The Norwegian institute said mammals can be infected with avian influenza through direct contact with birds or other mammals, and that it was investigating whether the virus detected in the polar bear and walrus was specifically adapted to mammals.
The detected virus is of the subtype H5N5 which has in recent years been found in Svalbard in birds, Arctic foxes and a walrus.
(Reporting by Anna Ringstrom, editing by Andrew Cawthorne)
