The West Nile Virus has been detected in a Blue Jay collected in the West Waco area, the Waco-McLennan County Public Health District said Tuesday.

“The detection of the virus confirms that the virus remains in the bird and mosquito population,” the Health District said in a prepared release.

It’s the first case of the virus detected in the area this year, officials said.

West Nile is a disease of the nervous system transmitted primarily from mosquitoes to birds, but also to horses and humans.

The Health District works with Baylor University and the Texas Department of State Health Services to monitor the presence of the virus by collecting mosquitoes.

There are about two dozen mosquito species in the McLennan County area, but only two of the species, Culex quinquefasciatus (Southern House Mosquito) and Aedes albopictus (Asian Tiger Mosquito) are known to transmit the virus, the Health District said.

So far this year, 69 cases of West Nile have been confirmed in 13 Texas counties, primarily in mosquitoes, although one human case has been reported.

In 2004, there were 2,754 confirmed cases in 190 Texas counties, including 119 confirmed human infections.

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WEST NILE PRECAUTIONS
(Source: Waco-McLennan County Public Health District)\

DEET: Wear insect repellant on exposed skin and clothing. Repellants containing DEET (N, N-diethyl-m- toluamide), oil of lemon eucalyptus or Picaridin are the most effective.

Dress: Wear light colored clothing including long sleeves and long pants.

Dusk / Dawn: Be aware that most mosquitoes are most active in early evening and early morning but can bite anytime of the day.

Drain: Drain any containers holding water. Remove standing water in your yard. Mosquitoes develop only in standing water. In just a few days, mosquitoes can grow from eggs to another new crop of hungry, biting mosquitoes.