A chicken carcass found in Hong Kong's Tung Ping Chau was confirmed to be H5N1 positive after a series of laboratory tests, the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department of Hong Kong (AFCD) said Thursday.

A spokesman of AFCD said that the carcass was found floating in the sea off Kang Lau Shek, Tung Ping Chau, on March 2. It was highly decomposed when found and required a series of confirmatory tests for avian influenza. Test results available on Thursday confirmed that the dead bird was H5N1 positive.

AFCD announced on March 6 that a chicken carcass found at the same location was confirmed to be H5N1 positive. No more poultry carcass was discovered there since March 2.

The spokesman said there were no poultry farms within three kilometers of where the dead bird was found. No unauthorized keeping of poultry has been observed during inspections.

(Xinhua News Agency March 13, 2009)