Japan has confirmed bird flu in four wild swans. Japan has detected bird flu of the virulent H5N1 strain for the first time in 13 months, officials said today, following tests on a group of swans.

The swans were found eight days ago on the banks of Lake Towada in Akita prefecture, about 550 kilometres north of Tokyo. Three of the swans were dead & the other was debilitated. Health official said that the Pathological tests have shown that the influenza virus is of a virulent nature and of the H5N1 type.

The local administration is to inspect 15 chicken farms within a radius of 30 kilometres of the lake tomorrow and Thursday. About 42,000 chickens will be subject to the inspections.