Authorities in Miyagi and Chiba prefectures began culling nearly 300,000 chickens Friday after the highly pathogenic H5 strain of bird flu was detected in dead chickens at local poultry farms.
In Japan's latest bird flu outbreak, the Miyagi Prefectural Government plans to cull 220,000 chickens and bury them by early Monday, while the Chiba authority is in the midst of culling 68,000 chickens.
The latest outbreaks follow infections in Miyazaki and Saga in Kyushu.