More mosquitos test positive for West Nile virus in the Twin Cities

More mosquitos are testing positive for West Nile virus in the Twin Cities metro area.

The Metropolitan Mosquito Control District says mosquitoes have now tested positive for West Nile virus in all seven counties in the metro.

They add that most of the mosquitoes that have tested positive are species that don't bite humans, although there have been some positive samples from mosquitoes that will bite humans in addition to birds.

So far there've been two human cases of West Nile virus reported in Minnesota this year, neither which have been in the Metropolitan Mosquito Control District.

West Nile virus was first found in Minnesota in 2002 and has since become the most commonly reported mosquitoborne disease in the state.

The highest risk areas for WNV in Minnesota include the western and central portions of the state. Open areas, such as farmland and prairie, provide the best habitat for the primary mosquito vector of the virus. Similar to other arboviruses, most WNV cases occur later in the summer when infected populations are at their highest level.