Dog virus killing NZ native seal pups has been around for at least five years

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2026-04-07 10:05

New Zealand

Photo by Christopher Stephens via iNaturalist (CC-BY-SA)

More details have emerged on the strain of canine distemper virus in fur seals, after it was first discovered last year. A new paper confirms the virus has been detected in seal samples dating back to 2020, suggesting it was present in the population for years before die-offs were observed between May and June 2025. There hasn't been a confirmed case of distemper in a domestic dog since 1983, leading the researchers to speculate the virus may have been present in the native seal population for decades longer than previously thought.

Attachments

Note: Not all attachments are visible to the general public. Research URLs will go live after the embargo ends.

Research Elsevier, Web page

Journal/
conference: Veterinary Microbiology

Research:Paper

Organisation/s: Massey University, Department of Conservation, University of Otago, Ministry for Primary Industries

Funder: This work was supported by the New Zealand Ministry for Primary Industries, Department of Conservation, Massey University and the University of Otago.

Media Contact/s

Contact details are only visible to registered journalists.