"Last week Chile said that nearly 9,000 sea lions, penguins, otters, porpoises and dolphins have died from bird flu along its north coast since the start of the

"Last week Chile said that nearly 9,000 sea lions, penguins, otters, porpoises and dolphins have died from bird flu along its north coast since the start of the year. Most mammals are believed to have contracted the virus by eating an infected bird. But Webby said that what "scares us the most" are indications from a Spanish mink farm, or among sea lions off South America, that the virus could be transmitting between mammals."