Bluetongue found in fifth animal

Bluetongue is spread to livestock by biting midges

A fifth animal in Suffolk has tested positive for bluetongue disease, government officials have said.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said the animal, at a farm near Burstall, east of Ipswich, will be culled.

The strain, first detected on Saturday, is the same as one that has killed livestock in Europe but the UK cases are yet not classed as an outbreak.

The virus, which is spread by midges, affects cattle, sheep, goats and deer.

Map of Suffolk bluetongue cases

This latest case comes after vets confirmed bluetongue in a fourth animal on premises at Washbrook near Ipswich on Wednesday, and in a Holstein cow on a farm in Lound on Tuesday.

It was first detected in two animals on a rare breeds farm in Baylham, near Ipswich.

'Not enough evidence'

Defra is currently conducting tests in the county to establish whether the disease is circulating.

But it says there is not yet enough evidence to confirm that an active outbreak of bluetongue is occurring in the UK.

It says these cases of bluetongue are not classed as an outbreak "unless further investigation demonstrates that disease is circulating between the local animal and midge populations".

There have been nearly 3,000 cases of bluetongue in Northern Europe - including the Netherlands, Belgium, France and Germany - since July, which had fuelled fears of its arrival in the UK.

Animals with the disease experience discomfort, with flu-like symptoms, and swelling and haemorrhaging in and around the mouth and nose. They can also go lame and have difficulty eating.

Precautionary

Environment Secretary Hilary Benn told the BBC that the announcement of the fifth case was "news that we didn't want to hear."

"But we have put precautionary restrictions in place and the teams are out there trying to find out how much further the disease might have circulated," he added.

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