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After the story about dead Swans on the Marine lake in Southport Qlocal asked Martin Mere if there were any cases of Avaian Flu at their site.

Thankfully there is not. They issued the following statement.

Cases of avian influenza have been confirmed across Great Britain and the disease is widespread in wild birds. At Martin Mere, we are one of the few sites in the country that test wild birds found in the countryside on our nature reserve. We do this due to the proximity of our collection birds to our nature reserve, in order to protect them.

As a result of testing, a small number of cases have been confirmed locally in wild birds on the reserve, which is unfortunately common at this time of year. All the cases we find are reported to APHA (Animal and Plant Health Agency) and this government department decides when to inform other organisations and when to take further actions. No Martin Mere collection birds and no wild birds have been found with Avian Influenza within our collection area.

We are closely monitoring this and, in line with government requirements, are taking measures to protect the birds here and to prevent the spread of the disease. The UK Health Security Agency advises that the risk to public health is very low.