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CANBERRA, Sept. 21 : South Australia (SA) on Monday reported four new confirmed cases of the H5N1 avian influenza in endangered sea lions.

SA Environment Minister Emily Bourke told reporters that four out of 10 Australian sea lions that were found dead on the Pages Island group off the state's southeast coast tested positive for H5N1 bird flu, including one pup.

It takes the total number of confirmed H5N1 cases in Australian sea lions to five after the first case in the species was detected on the nearby Kangaroo Island earlier in September.

North and South Page Island and Kangaroo Island are considered key breeding grounds for the Australian sea lion.

According to the National Parks and Wildlife Service, there are fewer than 12,000 Australian sea lions in the wild, 85 percent of which are in SA. Kangaroo Island is home to the third-largest colony of the species.

In addition to the sea lions, Bourke on Monday reported a new H5N1 mass mortality event involving crested terns on the Pages, with about 900 birds found dead on the islands.

There have been 318 confirmed H5N1 bird flu events in SA, representing more than half the 583 events that had been reported nationally as of Friday.