Seabird population on the brink as avian flu spreads, RSPB warns
The north's seabird population is being pushed "to the brink" as a result of avian flu, the RSPB has warned.
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The north's seabird population is being pushed "to the brink" as a result of avian flu, the RSPB has warned.
Rhian Sula, a general manager for the charity in Pembrokeshire, said it had deployed staff to warn visitors about the risks. Touching an infected bird is a known route of transmission.
As avian influenza continues to decimate wild populations, beach goers are warned to avoid sick or dead birds that have washed up on British beaches
The RSPB has warned people to avoid touching the birds and also recommends dogs should be kept from picking them up amid an avian flu outbreak. Twenty-one of the UK's 25 breeding seabird species tested positive for the virus in 2021
The RSPB has advised beachgoers to report dead seabirds to the authorities, and to also keep their dogs on the lead as they fear the rise in bird flu infections is a "crisis which could become a catastrophe"