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Blue Jay Tests Positive for West Nile Virus

By: Shenandoah National Park

OTTAWA – Another bird that was collected, a dead blue jay, has tested positive for West Nile Virus. According to the LaSalle County Health Department, the bird was collected in Marseilles and tested on Wednesday. The first human death attributed to the virus this year in Illinois occurred in late August in LaSalle County. This year, over 20 cases of the West Nile Virus in people have been discovered.  West Nile Virus is transmitted through the bite of a common house mosquito, which has picked up the virus by feeding on an infected bird.
 
Common symptoms include fever, nausea, headache and muscle aches. People who observe a sick or dying bird should contact the health department which will determine if the bird will be picked up for testing.

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