At least five native children living in Peru's northern Amazon jungle region have died after being bitten by rabid vampire bats, the health ministry said.

The victims, all between the ages of five and 10, were members of the Awajun and Wampis communities living province of Condorcanqui, some 1,000 kilometres north of Lima on the border with Ecuador.

Fernando Borjas, a medical doctor in the regional capital Chachapoyas, says the rabies outbreak has been going on for several months.

Health authorities have sent teams with vaccines to the remote jungle villages, but after a 15-hour river trip they often arrive too late.

"I cannot discount the death toll mounting, because unfortunately we cannot get them the vaccines [quickly enough] because the communities are so remote," Dr Borjas said.

Dr Borjas says the two communities have reported that 3,500 people were bitten by vampire bats this year.

"These bats feed at night, and since they do not find large animals they bite unprotected people," he said.

At least 20 people have been killed this year in the region after they were bitten by rabid bats, officials said.

- AFP