Bird flu: Trust claims one of worst inland outbreaks - BBC

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By Jennifer Harby

BBC News

A wildlife trust has issued fresh calls for the public not to feed wild birds, saying it has seen one of the UK's worst inland avian flu outbreaks.

Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust made the appeal to visitors to its most popular site, Attenborough Nature Reserve.

The charity said it had to deal with one of the worst inland outbreaks, which killed about 500 birds in the summer.

It said the virus showed no signs of letting up.

In January, the trust said the recent deaths of a number of swans at the reserve were likely to have been caused by bird flu.

It said outbreaks at the reserve had been made worse because of the level of bird feeding.

Trust chief executive Paul Wilkinson said: "Sadly, the avian flu outbreak shows no signs of letting up, with the risk of highly pathogenic avian flu in wild birds classed as very high.

"With spring bird migration under way, the chances of infected birds arriving at Attenborough will increase and we are therefore re-issuing our plea to visitors to help us keep the wild birds at Attenborough safe by no longer feeding them.

"Last summer, despite all our efforts, we had to deal with one of the largest inland outbreaks in wild birds in the UK.

"Seeing so many birds succumb to the disease was distressing for everyone, not least our staff who had to deal with the sick and injured birds on a daily basis.

"Feeding ducks, geese and swans at Attenborough has been a favourite experience for generations and has traditionally been a great way to get close to nature.

"However, now that we know bird feeding made the outbreak worse, we want to share the information so that people can help us help the wildlife they care passionately about."