Bird flu spreads to fourth German state

A wild duck and a swan found dead near the Polish border in Germany have tested positive for bird flu.

A wild duck and a swan found dead near the Polish border in Germany have tested positive for bird flu.

The discovery in Brandenburg means there are now four states in Germany where bird flu has been detected although the most recent discovery has not been confirmed as the H5N1 virus.

The dead birds were found on the edge of Schwedt, a spokesman for the state's agriculture ministry said.

He said the ministry did not have confirmation yet that the birds had the deadliest Asian strain of the H5N1 flu virus.

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"The probability that it is, however, is high," the spokesman said.

Yesterday, two dead ducks were found to carry the dangerous strain of avian flu in the northwestern state of Schleswig-Holstein, while another one tested positive in the southwestern state of Baden Wuerttemberg.

Most of the birds killed by the virus, 114 altogether, were in the Baltic coast state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, the majority on an island called Ruegen.

The bird flu found in all three states has been the deadly Asia form of the virus, local and federal officials have said.