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Bird flu is a notifiable disease in animals, so you should report any suspected case in animals to the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA), even if you're not sure.

Call the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra)helpline on 03459 33 55 77 if you find 5 or more dead birds in the same place.

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There are a number of things you can do to reduce your risk when visiting areas where outbreaks have been reported:

avoid visiting live animal markets and poultry farms

avoid contact with surfaces that are contaminated with bird droppings

don't pick up or touch birds (dead or alive)

don't eat or handle undercooked or raw poultry, egg or duck dishes

don't bring any live poultry products back to the UK, including feathers

always practise good personal hygiene, such as washing your hands regularly

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Bird flu is spread through direct contact with infected birds (dead or alive), an infected bird's droppings, or secretions from their eyes or respiratory tract.

Close and prolonged contact with an infected bird is generally required for the infection to spread to humans. For example:

touching infected birds that are dead or alive

inhaling or being in contact with dried dust from the droppings or bedding of infected birds

inhaling or being in contact with droplets sneezed by infected birds

culling, slaughtering, butchering or preparing infected poultry for cooking

Another possible source of bird flu can be live markets, where birds are sold in crowded and sometimes unsanitary conditions. Avoid visiting these markets if you're travelling in countries that have had an outbreak of bird flu.

Bird flu isn't transmitted through cooked food, so cooked poultry and eggs are safe to eat in areas that have experienced outbreaks of bird flu.

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Bird flu is diagnosed based on your symptoms and the likelihood that you've been exposed to an infected bird. You should tell the doctor if you have:

recently travelled to an area affected by bird flu and if you've been close (within a metre) to live or dead domestic fowl or wild birds, including those at bird markets

had close contact (touching or speaking distance) with anyone who has a severe respiratory illness

had contact with anyone who died unexpectedly and was from an area that had an outbreak

If bird flu is suspected, the following tests will be carried out to establish the diagnosis:

virus detection using a nose and throat swab

chest X-ray

blood tests

If the laboratory tests and chest X-ray results are normal, it's unlikely you have bird flu.

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Within days of symptoms appearing, potentially fatal complications such as pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome and multiple organ failure may develop. Prompt treatment with antiviral medication may help prevent complications and reduce the risk of death.

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In January 2018, a number of cases of H5N6 bird flu were identified in wild birds in 2 separate locations in the UK (South Dorset and Warwickshire). This led to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) introducing a Bird Flu Prevention Zone in England.

During 2016/17, there were several outbreaks of H5N8 bird flu in poultry flocks and wild birds in the UK and Europe. Since then, there have been further outbreaks of H5N8 across the Middle East, Africa and Asia. Worldwide, there have been no human cases of H5N8.

The last reported case of H5N1 in birds in the UK was in early 2008. H7N9 hasn't been detected in wild birds or poultry in the UK.

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Bird flu, or avian flu, is an infectious type of influenza that spreads among birds. In rare cases, it can affect humans.

There are many different strains of bird flu virus, most of which don't infect humans. However, 4 particular strains have caused serious concern in recent years:

H5N1 (since 1997)

H7N9 (since 2013)

H5N6 (since 2014)

H5N8 (since 2016)

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Which animals can be carriers of this virus? How is it transmitted?

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Which animals can be carriers of this virus? How is it transmitted?

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Bird flu affects many species of birds, including chickens, ducks, turkeys and geese. It can be passed between commercial, wild and pet birds.

*Birds don't always get sick from infection, so seemingly healthy birds may still pose a risk to people who come into contact with them.*

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Like other types of flu, bird flu symptoms often include:

a high temperature (fever)

aching muscles

headache

respiratory symptoms, such as a cough or runny nose

Diarrhoea, vomiting, stomach pain, chest pain, and bleeding from the nose and gums have also been reported as early symptoms in some people.

These symptoms can come on suddenly. The time from infection to the start of symptoms (incubation period) is usually 3 to 5 days, although in some cases it can be up to 7 days.