Russian boy catches the bubonic plague while hunting in Siberian mountains

The 10-year-old is believed to have caught the disease while skinning a marmot

A view of the Western Sayan Ridge in the Altai Mountain range on the Russo-Kazakh border (Reuters)

A 10-year-old boy caught bubonic plague while hunting with his grandfather in Siberian mountains.

The Russian is believed to have caught the potentially deadly disease when he cut himself with a knife while skinning a marmot.

Marmots are large rodents which are known to be susceptible to carrying the disease.

Marmot hunting is banned in the area due to the risk of catching bubonic plague but the ban is widely ignored.

Bubonic plague caused the Black Death epidemic in the 13th century, killing an estimated 30 per cent of the European population.

The unnamed child is in a "serious but stable condition" according to doctors, Mirror reports.

Vaccines, enough for at least 15,000, are being rushed to the remote area of Kosh-Agach in the Altai Mountains to combat any potential outbreak.

Marmots are known to be susceptible to Bubonic plague and hunting them in Siberia is banned as a result (Reuters)

At least 4,000 local residents will be vaccinated as a precaution. Local authorities have quarantined the 17 people who came into contact with the boy.

More than 6,192 people in the district have been vaccinated prior to the latest outbreak as it is a high risk area for the disease.

According to the World Health Organisation, people infected with bubonic plague usually develop "flu-like" symptoms after an incubation period of three to seven days.