Health officials in Marin County are testing mosquitoes for West Nile virus after a dead bird found in San Anselmo tested positive for the disease.
The dead bird, an American crow, was the first confirmed case of West Nile in Marin and Sonoma counties in 2013, according to the Marin/Sonoma Mosquito and Vector Control District.
The crow was recovered near Redwood Road and Floribel Avenue and was submitted for testing on May 29, according to the MSMVCD.
District spokeswoman Nizza Sequeira said today that adult mosquito traps had been set near where the infected crow was found, and that mosquitoes collected in the traps had been “collected and shipped to be tested for West Nile virus.”
Results from the tests should come back in four to six weeks.
Vector control workers were also conducting insect control operations at “known sources of mosquito production,” Sequeira said.
Seventeen birds from 10 California counties have tested positive for West Nile virus so far this year, according to the California Department of Public Health.
Residents were reminded to help prevent the spread of West Nile by eliminating standing water around private property, reporting mosquito problems to their local vector control districts, and reporting dead birds to the West Nile virus hotline at (877) 968-2473.
Residents can also report dead birds online through a state-sponsored website, www.westnile.ca.gov.
