Hundreds more dead birds removed from Aberdeenshire beaches

Hundreds more dead birds have been removed from two Aberdeenshire beaches amid avian flu fears.

About 330 had already been recovered from Stonehaven on Monday.

Aberdeenshire Council told BBC Scotland that 100 more had been taken away on Tuesday, as well as 126 from Cruden Bay.

However, the local authority warned more birds are expected to wash ashore with each tide.

Nature agency NatureScot said: "There are many potential causes of mortality in wild birds, however it is looking increasingly likely that recent deaths along the east coast of Scotland may be due to the current avian flu outbreak."

Ongoing monitoring is taking place to clear all busy public areas of carcasses.

The council said the risk of catching avian influenza from dead or dying birds was "extremely low" but due to other diseases which wild birds can carry the advice was to leave the birds in-situ.

It also urged people to keep pets and children away from dead or sick birds and not to touch wild bird feathers or surfaces contaminated with droppings.

Residents can report where there are more than 10 dead birds in an area via the council's online form on its avian flu webpage.

The growing number of deaths, as migrating birds return to UK shores, follows restrictions being put in place around a farm near Banff on Sunday after the virus was discovered.

Movement restrictions on poultry, carcasses, eggs and manure were put in place to prevent spread of the disease.

The New Arc wildlife rescue charity in Ellon, Aberdeenshire, has said it is no longer taking in sick seabirds due to the risk of avian flu spreading.