Spain reported a case of the highly contagious H5N8 bird flu virus in wild geese in the northern part of the country, the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) said on Thursday, citing a report from the Spanish ministry of agriculture.

Two infected wild geese were found dead in the Castile and Leon region, the ministry said, adding that it had increased surveillance of poultry farms in the area.

The H5N8 strain, which is deadly for poultry but has not been found in humans, has spread across Europe and the Middle East since late last year, leading to the slaughter of hundreds of thousands of poultry and the confinement of flocks indoors.

Italy also declared a first outbreak of H5N8, detected in a wild duck, on Thursday.