Avian influenza infection has been confirmed in a dead tundra swan collected in Matsue, Shimane Prefecture, the first such confirmation in the country this season, the Shimane prefectural government said Thursday.

The local government is examining whether the virus is a highly virulent type. Results of the examination are expected in a week.

The infection was confirmed in a genetic test conducted at the National Institute for Environmental Studies on the carcass found last Monday in the Mihonoseki district of the western city, located on the Sea of Japan, according to the local government.