A parrot that died in quarantine in Britain has been diagnosed with bird flu, the agriculture ministry said yesterday.

"A highly pathogenic H5 avian flu virus has been isolated in the parrot imported from Suriname, South America," the ministry said in a statement.

The statement did not specifically say whether it was a case of the H5N1 strain which has caused alarm in Europe in recent weeks as it can transfer to humans in limited circumstances.

The parrot was part of a mixed consignment of birds that arrived on September 16, the ministry said. Those birds were held with another consignment from Taiwan.

Meanwhile, Croatian scientists have detected a bird flu virus in wild swans found dead at a fish pond, the agriculture ministry said yesterday. Croatia immediately banned hunting and transport of wild fowl and poultry.

"We have sent samples to Britain for further checks. There were six dead swans found in Orahovica fish pond in eastern Croatia," ministry spokesman Mladen Pavic told Reuters.

A government statement issued by Prime Minister Ivo Sanader said the results of those checks were expected in two days but added there was no cause for alarm.