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Tom Crann
St. Paul, Minn.

West Nile virus makes early appearance

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Mosquito
The Culex tarsalis mosquito is the only mosquito that carries the West Nile virus. Researchers identify them by the white bands around the proboscis and around the legs.
Photo courtesy of South Dakota State University

The virus has been confirmed in two dead birds in the Twin Cities metro, and also in a sample of mosquitoes collected near Fort Snelling. This is the fifth year the mosquito-borne disease has been found in the state.

Last year, 45 cases were reported in Minnesota, and three people died from the disease. Eighty percent of people infected with West Nile show no symptoms.

Tom Crann talked to James Stark, the executive director of the the Metropolitan Mosquito Control District.

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Mosquito
The Culex tarsalis mosquito is the only mosquito that carries the West Nile virus. Researchers identify them by the white bands around the proboscis and around the legs.
Photo courtesy of South Dakota State University
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