Dutch authorities find 'highly pathogenic' bird flu strain

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Dutch authorities said on Sunday they had identified a "highly pathogenic" strain of bird flu at a farm in the central area of the Netherlands and announced a temporary ban on all transport to and from poultry farms across the country. In a statement, the government said the variant was fatal for chickens and that it was capable of jumping the species barrier to humans. Authorities said late on Saturday 150,000 hens would be destroyed after bird flu was found at the poultry farm in the village of Hekendorp and imposed bans on transporting birds within a one kilometer radius of the farm. (Reporting By Thomas Escritt; editing by Keiron Henderson)