An outbreak of bird flu in China's southern Guangdong Province is under control, the Ministry of Agriculture said on Tuesday.

The testing of dead ducks at Yashan Village in recent days detected the deadly H5N1 bird flu virus, the ministry said in a brief statement, without saying when the outbreak began.

A total of 3,873 ducks died and another 17,127 ducks were culled, it said.

Emergency measures have been taken and the epidemic has been brought under control, the ministry said.

The country has reported seven bird flu outbreaks among poultry since the beginning of 2008.

Besides the latest case, other outbreaks included one in the northwestern Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, three in the southwestern Tibet Autonomous Region, one in the southwestern Guizhou Province and another in Guangdong Province. This year the Ministry of Health has reported three human bird flu cases, all in February, in the central Henan Province, the southern Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region and Guangdong Province. All the three people involved died.

(Xinhua News Agency June 18, 2008)