West Nile Virus Testing
West Nile virus (WNV) is primarily a bird - mosquito - bird disease which sometimes spreads to humans and other animals through a bite from an infected mosquito. In the North Fork Valley we have two known vectors for WNV, Culex pipiens and Culex tarsalis. We monitor and test these species to identify when WNV appears in the mosquito population. Due to the natural landscape of our county, we have large areas of prime habitat for mosquito and bird interaction. Thanks to this prime habitat we have an increased potential for the mosquito population to acquire WNV.
Our mission at NFMAD is to identify when the mosquito population starts to carry WNV and work to minimize the risk to the human and horse population with an intensified integrated mosquito management (IMM) approach. By doing this we hope to be able to reduce the risk of WNV to the public.
We are blessed to be able to do in-house testing for WNV. By doing testing in-house we gain the benefit of fast and direct notification of positive mosquitoes, usually within 12-24 hours of the mosquito being trapped. With the results being available so quickly we can more efficiently activate our response to the increased risk.
We report all positive WNV tests results to the Delta County Department of Health, who in turn reports the results to the CDC. To see State or County level data, feel free to select the content below to get further information.
