Bird flu antibodies turn up in East Greenland's polar bears for the first time
The CDC journal paper is short and readable, and it shows how Inuit hunters' samples made a 10-year record possible.
What happened: Researchers from Cornell and partners in Norway, Denmark and Canada tested blood from 109 polar bears taken by Inuit subsistence hunters near Ittoqqortoormiit (Scoresby Sound), East Greenland, from 2016 to 2025. Samples up to 2023 showed no flu antibodies. Then 3 of 14 bears in 2024 and 6 of 14 in 2025 had influenza A antibodies. Four 2025 bears had antibodies to the H5 bird flu strain that has been spreading worldwide, meaning they were exposed and survived. Hunters reported no sick bears. The study appears in Emerging Infectious Diseases.
Why it matters: Shrinking sea ice means polar bears spend more time on land, near the bird colonies that carry the virus. A young polar bear in Svalbard reportedly died of bird flu in 2026, and Alaska recorded a death in 2023.
How much agreement is there? Broad agreement that this is worth watching. The open questions are whether Greenland's virus has changed in ways that make it spread more easily in mammals, and whether bears could pass it to each other, for example at carcasses.
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Influenza A virus subtype H5N1
After exploring Evidence of Exposure to Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza H5 Viruses in East Greenland Polar Bears, to understand the virus itself, read Influenza A virus subtype H5N1.
The bird flu subtype that is enzootic in many bird populations and can infect mammals exposed to infected birds, sometimes with severe or fatal symptoms.
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