Bluetongue virus is spread partly by animal transmission

The bluetongue virus, which killed tens of thousands of sheep last fall, is likely spread in part by animal transport.

Researchers from Wageningen University believe this allowed the virus to travel long distances.

The virus was discovered last September in the neighboring municipalities of Wedmeren (Northern Netherlands) and Stichtsee Vecht (Utrecht). This was the first time since 2009 that the disease had been discovered in the Netherlands. And then the blue tongue spread rapidly. More than a week after the first case appeared, the government reported a large number of infections, making the measures no longer useful. At the beginning of October, more than a thousand livestock farms were affected, and in November the number reached more than five thousand affected companies.

In some cases, the virus came from a farm in the nearby area. This is likely to be infection from a short distance by infected midges, which are small biting flies. But sometimes the virus travels tens of kilometers farther, and this indicates “other modes of transmission,” the researchers say.

Bluetongue is a disease that mainly affects sheep, but goats, cows, deer and some zoo animals can also become infected. The virus causes, among other things, blue tongue, high fever and swelling in cattle. This can cause them to die. The virus is not contagious to humans.

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