Heron tests positive for bird flu in Romania

A heron has tested positive for bird flu in eastern Romania near the border with Moldova, officials said today.

The bird, which was found near the village of Falciu, tested positive for the H5 subtype of bird flu, said Ioan Zaharia, the local government representative in Vaslui County.

Further tests will determine whether it is infected with the H5N1 bird flu virus which is being tracked for fear it could mutate into a form that could easily infect humans.

The H5N1 virus has already been confirmed in two Romanian villages in the Danube Delta.

Falciu would be the first affected location in Romania outside the delta.