Bird flu confirmed as cause of gull death in Moravia

Bird flu has been confirmed by the State Veterinary Institute as the cause of death for dozens of black-headed gulls which were found dead at a pond in Chropyně, a small town in the southeast of the Czech Republic. The positive result was confirmed on Thursday morning after veterinarians took samples on Wednesday.

Around 30 dead birds were found in total, although the director of the regional veterinary administration, Michal Kamarád, said it cannot be ruled out that there were even more hidden in the reeds. It is not clear when exactly the birds died.

The pond in Chropyně is one of the largest nesting sites of the black-headed gull in Central Moravia.

Large numbers of gulls dying from bird flu have also been reported in two other areas of the Czech Republic in recent days. Around 100 seagulls died over the weekend at a pond near Hodonín in south Moravia, and 60 birds were confirmed to have perished from the disease at a pond in Velvary in the Central Bohemian Region.

Veterinarians warn of the risk of the infection being introduced into poultry farms and are appealing to breeders to observe biosecurity rules and to minimise the risk of poultry coming into contact with wild birds.