The views would be gone, and the Wordsworth landscape could die.

Paul Tiplady, Lake District National Park Authority

The outbreak at Black Hall Farm in Seathwaite, not far from Coniston Water, was detected among cattle.

But it is now feared that the disease may spread to the herdwick sheep, which are unique to Cumbria, and which graze freely on the fells.

This, according to Paul Tiplady, chief executive of the Lake District National Park Authority, would be a "true disaster" which could see the end of the Lake District in its current state.

He said: "Herdwick sheep would be very difficult to replace. They are 'hefted', which means the ewes teach the lambs to live on the land, and they know their own boundaries - they don't need walls.

'Cultural heritage'

"They are also the only sheep hardy enough to survive on the high fells."

There were 75,000 herdwicks in the park, but already half the flock had been lost to Cumbria's "firebreak" culling, as the young sheep had been sent to the lowlands for the winter.

"If we lost the whole flock, it would be catastrophic," Mr Tiplady said.

Much of Cumbria's tourism industry relies on walkers

"It would take 10 years to re-establish sheep on the high fells.

"We would have to fence off the fells, and the public would go berserk, or we would need hundreds of shepherds, and where are the people?

"Many of our farmers are quite old, and they would not want to spend 10 years rebuilding the flock.

"The beauty of the area is the wide open fell land. In two or three years, the short grass, which is grazed by the sheep, would be gone, and would be replaced by scrubland.

"The views would be gone, and the Wordsworth landscape could die."

'Much to offer'

Chris Collier, chief executive of the Cumbria Tourist Board, said the situation in the area was now "really very, very acute".

Cumbria's tourism industry was currently losing �10m a week.

The whole of the Lake District is blighted for the next six months

Alan Piper, hotel owner

"To lose sheep off the fells is one of the most serious things that could happen to us," she said.

But Ms Collier stressed that Cumbria still had much to offer to tourists - even though the fells had been closed for weeks.

"We just need the public to understand that much of what they want to do is still here, and they can do it and have a good time."

The tourist board has set up a fighting fund to finance a major marketing campaign to try to recover lost business.

Its website states that three quarters of attractions in the county are currently still open. It also suggests a range of activities for tourists to try, including lake cruises, minibus tours and museum visits.

But Ms Collier said that businesses which had suffered because of foot-and-mouth needed government assistance to help sustain them through the crisis.

Cumbria is one of the worst-hit areas

Many of those relying on a regular influx of visitors say that in reality, it is walkers which sustain the area's tourist industry.

Alan Piper, who runs the Sun Hotel and 16th Century Inn in Coniston, said trade was only a quarter to a fifth of what it should be for the time of year.

'No bookings'

He said: "Only about 5% of people who come to Coniston don't come to walk. It's the whole point. People are not going to come to Coniston if they can't.

"Tourism is bigger than farming financially now. It's bad enough for farmers, but it's having an awful effect on everybody up here."

Susan Batten, who runs Oakbank, a small bed and breakfast business in Ulpha, just a few miles from Seathwaite, said: "Even before this latest outbreak, my existing bookings had been cancelled.

"The latest outbreak in the fells means the situation will continue for longer like this. It has made things worse, but they were pretty bad already.

"It's not just the tourist industry - small businesses are suffering. It's disastrous really."