Bird flu confirmed in Worcestershire wildbird centre

The avian influenza was identified at a wildbird rescue centre in Worcestershire on Tuesday, October 26..

All the birds on site will be humanely culled.

A 3km and 10km temporary control zone has also been put in place around the infected premises to limit the risk of the disease spreading.

UK chief veterinary officer Christine Middlemiss said: "H5N1 avian influenza has been confirmed at a wildbird rescue centre in Worcestershire.

"UK Health Security Agency has confirmed that the risk to public health is very low and the Food Standards Agency has said that bird flu poses a very low risk to food safety for UK consumers.

"As we move into the higher risk period over winter bird keepers should pay extra attention to the health of their birds.

"Anybody who suspects disease should report it to their vet or APHA immediately.

"The best way to tackle this disease is for poultry keepers to ensure that they have strong biosecurity measures in place."

Wild birds migrating to the UK from mainland Europe during the winter months can carry the disease and this can lead to cases in poultry and other captive birds.

The highly pathogenic bird flu (HPAI) H5NI is spreading in wild birds (namely ducks, including Eurasian wigeon and mallard) along the wildfowl migration flyway in northern Germany and Denmark.

These species will migrate further west into the UK and many have already arrived - with high numbers of wigeon still expected across GB, peaking in December.

Consequently Defra has raised the risk level of HPAI H5 in the UK via wild birds from low (event is rare but does occur) to medium (event occurs regularly).

The risk of poultry and captive bird exposure to HPAI H5 across the country is still classed as low.

Here are some simple measures that all poultry keepers should take to protect their birds against the threat of avian flu.

These apply to people running a large commercial farm, keeping a few hens in their back garden and those rearing game birds.