Twenty-six swans have been culled in Berkshire as the avian influenza outbreak spreads across England.

The birds were being cared for at the Swan Lifeline rehabilitation centre on Cuckoo Weir Island in Windsor.

It comes after several cases have been confirmed in birds across the country.

He said he was "absolutely broken-hearted" when they had to be culled on New Year's Day.

Health officials said human cases were extremely rare and there was no evidence of onward transmission in this instance.

Swan Lifeline, which cares for sick and injured swans, said the H5N1 strain of avian flu was confirmed by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) after a dead swan was found in Eton on 2 January.

The charity said: "Defra sent a team and a vet to humanely put to sleep the 26 swans we were still caring for since the outbreak.

The exclusion zone will be in place for at least three weeks and could be restarted for another 21 days if any more infected birds are discovered, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Town manager Paul Roach said the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead Council's trading standards team was leading the response to the outbreak and has been contacting rescue centres and birdkeepers.

He said: "The primary aim is to try and prevent birds from flocking together?

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