The farmer noticed an increase in mortality among his ducks and contacted the authorities
Bird flu is back in Britain as a case of bird flu has been confirmed at a duck breeding farm in East Yorkshire, officials have said.
We are just getting over Ebola,and now bird flu,phew!
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said the risk to
public health was very low. Some 6,000 birds will be culled and a 10km (6 mile) exclusion zone is in place.
The exact strain has not been confirmed but the H5N1 form, deadly to humans, has been ruled out by Defra officials.
The virus spreads between birds and, in rare cases, can affect humans.
The case is the first in the UK since 2008, when chickens on a farm in Banbury, Oxfordshire tested positive for the virus.
On Sunday, an outbreak of a highly contagious strain of bird flu was discovered at a poultry farm in the Netherlands.
The Dutch government has imposed a three-day nationwide ban on the transportation of poultry and eggs.
Officials say the strain, H5N8, is very dangerous for bird life and could potentially affect humans, although people can only be infected through very close contact with the affected birds.
UK chief veterinary officer Nigel Gibbens told the BBC the British case may be linked to the European outbreaks.
"The link to the disease they found in Germany and the Netherlands is our most likely source and, on that basis, Public Health England has said with this strain there is not a risk to public health," he said.
'Strong record'
The exclusion zone around the farm in the village of Nafferton prevents all poultry and poultry waste being transferred in or out of the area.
Defra said the flu strain had been identified as the H5 virus, stressing that it was not the H5N1 strain.
A spokeswoman said: "We have confirmed a case of avian flu on a duck breeding farm in Yorkshire - the public health risk is very low and there is no risk to the food chain.
"We are taking immediate and robust action which includes introducing a restriction zone and culling all poultry on the farm to prevent any potential spread of infection. A detailed investigation is ongoing.
"We have a strong track record of controlling and eliminating previous outbreaks of avian flu in the UK."
A Public Health England spokesman said: "Public Health England are assisting Defra in the investigation of an avian flu outbreak at a duck breeding farm in Yorkshire.
"Based on what we know about this specific strain of avian influenza, the risk to human health in this case is considered extremely low."
