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Another responsibility of the PCMCD is to monitor the presence of arboviruses, viruses which are transmitted by mosquitoes.

The viruses we currently test for are Eastern Equine Encephalitis, St. Louis Encephalitis and West Nile Virus.

Every week during the mosquito season, PCMCD staff draw blood from chickens located in cages distributed throughout the county.
The blood is then analyzed to determine if any disease-carrying mosquitoes have infected the birds. If a virus is detected, that area of the county is thoroughly inspected to find and eliminate mosquito breeding sources and any adult mosquitoes which may be present.