A dead swan has been photographed at a lake in Swindon as the Wiltshire Wildlife Trust (WWT) confirms cases at one of its popular south Wiltshire reserves.
On 7 October, Swindon Borough Council confirmed that dead birds found at Coate Water and Shaftesbury Lake died with avian influenza – also known as bird flu.
The news came with a warning that it can spread to humans and pets, with locals told not to touch dead or sick wild birds, including bird feathers or areas contaminated by droppings.
However, the highly contagious disease has now been confirmed to have killed birds at Langford Lakes, best known for its sightings of extremely rare white-tailed eagles.
A spokesperson for WWT said: “We have sadly started dealing with an outbreak of avian flu at our Langford Lakes nature reserve in the south of Wiltshire.
“Unfortunately, our team are finding many dead or distressed birds at the reserve.
“Please help us to stop the outbreak from spreading by not feeding or touching the birds, keeping to the footpaths and reporting any dead birds to us.”
Visitors who spot a dead bird are asked to send a photograph and What3Words location to [email protected].
