Almost 1.8 million farmed and captive birds have been culled in the past three months because of the spread of avian flu across the UK, the BBC has learned. There have been 33 outbreaks of the virus on farms and, on Wednesday, the government said bird-keepers in five more English counties would have to house flocks indoors from Sunday.

The egg industry has spent millions of dollars on measures to prevent avian influenza from devastating their flocks.

Avian flu was detected in a backyard flock of about 15 ducks and geese in Madison County, according to Madison County Public Health. It is the first known case of avian flu in domestic birds in the county, but a bald eagle found in the county in September 2022 tested positive for avian flu.

HPAI spreads easily among birds and – while rare – can spread from birds to people. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention considers the risk to people from HPAI viruses to be low.