Bird Flu has been found in a parrot under quarantine which was being imported from Surinam, South America. It has been confirmed as the lethal H5N1 strain found predominantly in Asia. It is speculated that the flu might have originated from Taiwanese birds which had previously been kept with the South American birds, as no other H5N1  cases have yet been reported in Surinam. This is the first case of avian flu found in birds destined to be imported to the United Kingdom since the recent outbreak affecting many parts of the world. The BBC has said that all birds in the quarantine unit are now being culled. People who may have come into contact with them will be given anti-viral treatment as a precaution.
Although the case was found in the UK it does not affect the UK's 'disease free' status because the bird was under quarantine.

Have an opinion on this story? Share it!
Share this: 






This page is archived, and is no longer publicly editable.
Got a correction? Add the template {{editprotected}} to the talk page along with your corrections, and it will be brought to the attention of the administrators.
Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections.
Note that some listed sources or external links may no longer be available online due to age.
Got a correction? Add the template {{editprotected}} to the talk page along with your corrections, and it will be brought to the attention of the administrators.
Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections.
Avian flu found within UK