DOVER, Del. (AP) - Delaware officials say West Nile Virus has been detected in the state for first time this year.
The Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control announced Monday that blood samples from sentinel chickens monitored for mosquito-borne diseases tested positive for the virus.
The chickens were sampled at monitoring stations in Leipsic and Georgetown. Mosquito population monitoring will be stepped up in these areas.
The virus has not been found in wild birds, horses or humans so far this year. Mosquito Control Section Administrator Dr. William Meredith says it's unusual in Delaware to first find occurrences of the virus in sentinel chickens and not in wild birds and in locations in Kent and Sussex counties, not New Castle County.
