Alarm over suspected avian flu bird deaths

Dead and dying birds at Albert Village Lake were pictured at the weekend

Dozens of birds have died at a nature reserve from suspected avian flu.

Linjoy Wildlife Sanctuary in Etwall, Derbyshire, has been monitoring sick or injured Black Headed Gulls.

It has received reports from the Swadlincote area, while many affected birds have been discovered at Albert Village Lake, just over the border in Leicestershire.

Samples have been sent off for tests but staff said they were engaged in "damage control".

The reserve will be closed to the public for the next three days as a precaution, park bosses have said.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) told the BBC it had "not yet received any reports of wild bird avian influenza cases in the area".

Tackling the spread

The sanctuary said it had been monitoring gull roosts after reports of some birds "literally dropping from the sky".

In the past five days, at least 38 dead birds have been removed from Albert Village Lake by National Forest rangers and Linjoy staff.

There is concern the birds' breeding season will again be affected

In a Facebook post early on Tuesday, the sanctuary said large numbers of birds had been found dead on a roosting island at the nature reserve or washed up on the shore.

It said: "It is absolutely heart breaking and at its current rate, it is likely to affect this year's breeding season.

"We are currently liaising with the National Forest rangers to work out a plan to remove dead and sick birds in order to try and slow the spread of the virus between the gulls and other birds and animals that call the lake home."

Public warning

The sanctuary said it recommended dog walkers keep their dogs on leads at all times as they can get the virus from eating birds or droppings.

Members of the public have also been told not to pick the birds up or attempt to bring them to the sanctuary.

Last year saw the largest ever recorded global outbreak of avian flu.

While restrictions on poultry and captive birds were eased last month, experts warned wild bird populations were still at risk.