Dead Petone seal tests negative for bird flu

A leopard seal found dead in the Hutt River died of natural causes and not bird flu, the Department of Conservation (DOC) says.The seal drew crowds on Petone Beach earlier this month, with reports that some members of the public harassed the protected animal.Ranger biodiversity David Moss said bird flu testing came back negative, and the seal did not appear to be infected with any other disease."The test results show the leopard seal was relatively old, and not infected with [high pathogenicity avian influenza] or any other obvious disease. From this, we can infer she died of natural causes."A marine biologist previously told RNZ the harassment may have contributed to its death, as the attention can drain the animal's energy while they're trying to rest.