Park in capital of Costa del Sol closed to public while death of around 20 birds is investigated
The city council took the precautionary measure after local residents alerted them that of a number of ducks, coots and seagulls had been found dead at the weekend. It follows an outbreak of bird flu that was recently detected in Seville
The death of around 20 birds in Huelin park in Malaga, including ducks, coots and seagulls, detected last weekend by local residents, has set off alarm bells at the city council. It announced today (Wednesday) that the park is to be closed to the public as a precautionary measure, in case it could be a case of avian flu, similar to that detected in recent days in the Parque del Tamarguillo in Seville.
According to the council, workers will also reinforce surveillance in the rest of the green areas of the city where there are bodies of water frequented by wild and migratory birds in case the deaths of these animals could be due to "an episode of avian influenza".
Officials have sent samples of the dead birds and the lake water to the laboratory of the Centro de Análisis y Diagnóstico de la Fauna Silvestre de la Junta de Andalucía, from where they have been forwarded to the Laboratorio Nacional de Referencia para la Influenza Aviar (Laboratorio Central de Veterinaria de Algete), part of Spain's Ministry of Agriculture. According to city hall staff, the results of these analyses are not yet known.
Temporary closure
"At the moment, no new cases have been registered in the Huelin park or in any other public park with ponds. However, in view of the Junta de Andalucía concerns and the detection of outbreaks of avian influenza in other wetlands, such as the one confirmed in the Tamarguillo park in Seville, the council has decided to take precautions. It has informed the companies awarded the maintenance and conservation services contract for the city's green zones of the need to reinforce vigilance in all wetlands as a preventive measure, as well as temporarily closing the Huelin park", the council explained.
The municipal team has stressed that this is a "temporary measure" and that, once the results of the analyses are known in the next few days, the necessary actions will be taken in coordination with the protocols established by the Junta de Andalucía and the Ministries of Agriculture and Health. In this regard, they have reminded that the avian influenza surveillance programme in Spain 2025 drawn up by the Ministry of Agriculture establishes that "in the event that the finding of sick or dead animals is considered unusual, suspicious or doubtful, the animals will be immediately removed and transferred for necropsy and sample collection". This has already been done by the city council after concerns were raised by the Parque del Oeste neighbourhood movement According to this document, in the event of suspicion of the disease, it is recommended that vigilance be intensified, avoiding as far as possible that this measure itself leads to the dispersal of the birds, and that those areas that may be linked by sharing avian populations also be subjected to supervision.
