Gus Trompiz | PARIS

Zimbabwe has reported an outbreak of highly pathogenic H5N8 bird flu at a commercial poultry farm in Mashonaland East province, the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) said on Friday.

The virus was detected on a farm with 2 million birds in Lanark and killed 7,845 animals. Another 75,155 birds were culled, the Paris-based OIE said, citing a report from the Zimbabwe’s livestock and veterinary services.

“The affected site is close to a small dam where there are a number of different migratory waterfowl, which are tentatively suspected to be (the) source of infection,” the report said.

(Reporting by Gus Trompiz; Editing by Bate Felix)