Around 3,000 birds died in three outbreaks of H5N1 beginning in April, according to Vietnam’s Department of Animal Health.

The outbreaks were reported at backyard farms in the South Vietnamese provinces of Can Tho, Dong Thap and Vinh Long. Early in February this year, there were reports of an outbreak at a backyard farm in Tra Vinh, a province near the Mekhong Delta. Highly pathogenic avian influenza has periodically flared up in Vietnam since 2003.