FEARS have been raised that bird flu could be the cause of an unusually large number of dead birds being found on East Lothian beaches in recent days.

Over the last week, sightings of deceased northern gannets have risen sharply across the county.

The birds are famous for their large colony on the Bass Rock, off the coast of North Berwick, with their presence becoming synonymous with the town.

The protected species also brings in thousands of visitors each year to East Lothian, with the Scottish Seabird Centre running guided boat tours to see the colony.

Gannets are known to wash up on county beaches regularly when they die, but not in the number that have been seen over the last week, sparking fears that the local population has been affected by avian flu.

Susan Davies, CEO of the Scottish Seabird Centre, acknowledged the worrying rise in numbers and announced that the birds would be tested to confirm if the disease has returned.

She said: “Over the last week we have seen, and continue to see, a more significant number of dead and/or sick gannets washed up along the East Lothian coastline.

“These have been reported to the relevant authorities and a small number of birds from the Bass Rock will be collected for testing for avian flu.

“It is important if people find dead birds that they don’t touch these and simply report them to Defra on 03459 335577 who can collect dead birds from public areas such as beaches.

“If avian flu is confirmed, we simply don’t know at this stage how severe an impact it may have on the gannet numbers. We will continue to monitor the situation and update in due course.

“We have a small number of visitor landing trips to the island scheduled and have already implemented extra biosecurity and personal hygiene measures for these.”