At least 200 dead shelduck have been found on beaches on the Zeeland peninsula of Walcheren since Monday, local officials have confirmed.

The cause of the mass deaths has not yet been established and some of the cadavers have now been sent away for post mortem in an effort to find the cause.

Vlissingen council is urging people to find a dead duck not to touch it, and to keep dogs on a lead while walking on the beach. The birds have all been found on beaches close to the port town.

Shelduck are a semi-terrestrial water fowl which eat small shore animals such as winkels and crabs, as well as grasses and other plants.