It has been confirmed as the country's first case of the H5 virus, but tests are continuing. The result makes it the seventh country in the European Union to confirm cases.

France, Europe's largest poultry producer, and the Netherlands have applied to the European Union to start preventative vaccination in some areas.

A European Commission spokesman said the vaccination plans would be considered by the EU's Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health next week.

The French authorities have notified the Commission that the duck found in Ain, near Lyon, had the H5 strain of bird flu and there was a strong suspicion that was H5N1.

A 3km safety cordon has been established around the site where the wild duck was found, and wildlife surveillance stepped up across a 10km area.

Vets will check all birds in the zone, in accordance with EU emergency measures.

This follows the confirmation of the deadly H5N1 virus in dead swans in Austria, Germany, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Greece and Italy in the last week, while tests are still being carried out on two dead ducks found in the Somme region in the north of the France.

The French government has ordered all poultry and tame birds to be kept indoors, in a bid to halt the spread of the infection.

Earlier this week, the EU approved a series of measures to try to halt the spread of the virus, including the automatic creation of protection and surveillance zones around outbreaks in wild birds.