An outbreak of bird flu has been confirmed at a poultry farm in East Yorkshire.
The Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said that highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N5 had been confirmed at the commercial poultry business in Hornsea.
The government agency said that all birds on the infected premises would be culled, while a 3km (1.9-mile) protection zone and a 10km surveillance zone had been put in place in the area surrounding the farm, which has not been named.
It is the second recorded outbreak of the virus in captive birds in England this year. In February, the H5N1 strain of the virus was found in poultry near Hutton Cranswick, also in East Yorkshire.
“All bird keepers must remain vigilant and practise stringent biosecurity to protect the health and welfare of their birds,” Defra said.
The government department also said bird flu had been detected in wild birds this autumn, and said the risk level in wild birds had been increased from medium to high.
The agency also encouraged members of the public to report findings of dead waterfowl, such as swans, geese or ducks, or other dead wild birds, including gulls or birds of prey.
One of the main signs of an outbreak of bird flu is a sudden and rapid increase in numbers of dead birds. Once the virus is established in wild birds it can spread across continents as they migrate.
Bird flu, also known as avian influenza, has killed tens of millions of birds worldwide in recent years.
The virus is spread through birds’ faeces, mucus and saliva, or through contaminated food and water. It has increasingly spread to mammals, leading to concerns about potential human-to-human transition.
Outbreaks of avian influenza occur typically in autumn and winter. A flare-up in 2021, the largest recorded in the UK, killed tens of thousands of birds, including more than 2,000 great skuas, and more than 13,000 barnacle geese.
