Swans and gulls found dead at Doncaster Lakeside believed to be victims of bird flu

Visitors to the facility found pathways closed off, with representatives from the police, council, RSPCA and Defra on site after gulls and swans were found deceased.

People voiced their concerns on Facebook, James Jeynes said: “Very sad to see two dead swans at the beach today at Lakeside .. one had obviously been attacked, the other not so sure .. 17 years here and never seen one dean swan, let alone two.

Karen Saynor said: “Police told us this morning that it is bird flu. They were closing the area off as they said its dangerous for other animals too.”

Mark Hurd also witnessed some dead birds: “Very sad… I reported 3 dead swans to the online council at 07:45 this morning (Monday) all by the beach area.”

We have contacted Defra for more information and advice and will bring this to you shortly.

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

There are lots of different strains of bird flu virus. Most of them don't infect humans. But there are 4 strains that have caused concern in recent years:

Bird flu is spread by close contact with an infected bird (dead or alive). This includes: touching infected birds; touching droppings or bedding; killing or preparing infected poultry for cooking.

You can't catch bird flu through eating fully cooked poultry or eggs, even in areas with an outbreak of bird flu.

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