A baby seal has died as bird flu cases mount, sparking fears of an escalation in the deadly strain’s spread. The pup was recovered after washing up in Warrnambool, on Victoria’s south-west coast, and had been identified as a potential bird flu case. Fears have already been raised for Australia’s seal colonies. The magpie was among 16 new bird flu detections, all from the south-west Victorian coast. There have now been 123 confirmed or presumed positive detections of H5 bird flu in Australia, based on samples tested.