North Cave Wetlands: Nine mute swans die in avian flu outbreak

The first swan died at North Cave Wetlands, around two weeks ago, which is run by Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, followed by another a couple of days later.

One of the dead birds has been taken away for analysis by Defra.

The virus, which has wreaked havoc in commercial flocks and wild bird populations, appears not to be affecting other birds at the reserve at present.

It was only in 2023 that a major outbreak of the flu killed 1,000 black-headed gulls at the reserve.

In January Defra declared the whole of England a bird flu prevention zone, enforcing strict hygiene standards around domesticated birds because of the escalating number of cases.

Even stricter measures, requiring all birds to be placed in enclosures, are also in force in East and North Yorkshire.

Nature Reserves Manager Tony Martin said, “It is with great sadness that we have reported an outbreak of avian influenza at North Cave Wetlands. We are liaising closely with Defra on next steps, and following their advice during this time.”

So far nine birds had been confirmed dead – and possibly others had died in a reedbed.

Mr Martin said the flu appeared to have affected mute swans at another nearby RSPB reserve.

He said: “It’s very odd – when we had avian flu before 99 per cent was black-headed gulls; this time it seems to be affecting mute swans at North Cave and nothing else.

"We still have mute swans on site that are feeding and healthy. All we can do is monitor the situation closely.”

North Cave Wetlands is asking visitors to report any poorly or dead birds they see if visiting the reserve, but not to touch them. The black-headed gull population recovered well following the outbreak – and the trust hopes the same will happen this time. There are around 32,000 resident mute swans in the UK and about 7,000 breeding pairs.