# 1456
Most of the news this morning centers on the discovery of 3 dead mute swans on the southern coast of England that tested positive for bird flu.
Despite the sheer volume of news reports, so far, this appears to be a relatively minor incident. Infected birds, no doubt, exist in the UK. The discovery of the 3 mute swans only confirms that.
Disconcerting, perhaps. But hardly surprising.
France, reacting to the news, has raised their bird flu alert status accordingly.
France raises bird flu risk level
Fri 11 Jan 2008, 10:53 GMT
PARIS, Jan 11 (Reuters) - France's agriculture ministry raised the level of risk for bird flu to moderate from low on Friday after Britain discovered the deadly H5N1 strain in three wild swans.
France, Europe's biggest poultry producer, last adjusted its risk levels for birdflu on Oct. 12 after no new cases of the H5N1 virus were detected in wild birds in the country for an extended period.
As a result of the ministry's latest move, birds and poultry in high priority zones have to be locked up to avoid contact with wild birds. It is also prohibited to use birds for hunting.
The French government raised its risk alert to "high" after some wild swans infected with the highly pathogenic virus were found dead in northeast France in July 2007.
Britain warned poultry owners on Thursday to protect their flocks and is taking steps to ensure that poultry cannot be moved within the EU's usual control area unless the birds were being transported directly to slaughterhouses. (Reporting by Tamora Vidaillet; editing by Chris Johnson)
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