Fifth swan tests positive for H5N1 bird flu

LONDON (Reuters) - A fifth swan in southern England has tested positive for the deadly H5N1 strain of bird flu, the farm ministry confirmed.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said in a statement issued on Sunday that the swan was found in the same area as the previous four cases.

"This is not unexpected, and Defra's enhanced surveillance of wild birds in the area is continuing, including active patrols to look for dead wild birds," the ministry said.

Earlier this month, the ministry said three wild swans in a bird sanctuary in Dorset had died from the virus. Last week a fourth case was confirmed.

"There is currently no evidence to suggest widespread disease in the wild bird population," the ministry said, adding there was no evidence of the disease in domestic birds.

Britain's first case of the strain was in a wild swan found dead in Cellardyke in Scotland in 2006 and there have subsequently been outbreaks at poultry farms in eastern England, most recently in November 2007.

The virulent H5N1 strain has killed more than 210 people worldwide since 2003 and millions of birds have either died from it or been killed to prevent its spread.

(Reporting by Nigel Hunt; Editing by Peter Blackburn)