Bird flu epidemic in Belgium… 400 dead seagulls

According to a written statement from the Durme nature conservation association, 400 birds, mostly black-headed gulls and three grebes, died in two weeks from the H5N1 virus. 15 percent of the country’s black-headed gull population has disappeared.

As it is the start of the breeding season, the negative impact of the virus on the gull population is expected to be enormous.

Belgium’s Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain confirmed the cause of death as H5N1, a deadly strain of bird flu.

It was noted that the virus is also dangerous to other animals and humans, and that visitors to the area should not touch dead or sick birds.

In recent weeks, cases of bird flu have also been detected in Peru, Gambia and Senegal.

On April 11, China notified the World Health Organization that a person infected with the A(H3N8) strain of bird flu had died. (AA)