Belleville mosquitoes positive for West Nile; virus also found in Monroe County

A batch of mosquitoes collected in Belleville Tuesday tested positive for West Nile virus, the Illinois Department of Public Health said Thursday.

According to IDPH spokeswoman Melaney Arnold, the Belleville batch is the second one in St. Clair County to be infected. A batch collected in O’Fallon tested positive for the virus on May 28.

West Nile-positive mosquitoes have been located in two metro-east counties, Arnold said. Two batches collected in Waterloo also have tested positive. Positive batches have been found in seven other Illinois counties, including Cook, DuPage, Winnebago, Rock Island, Mercer, Macon and Galatin.

“Two of the best things you can do is make sure you wear insect repellant when you go outside and getting rid of standing water outside your home,” Arnold said.

She said the types of mosquitoes that accompany periods of heavy rain and floods typically don’t carry the virus. Those mosquitoes tend to be bigger. The breed that does carry the virus tends to be smaller and “more stealthy,” Arnold said. They prefer stagnant water.

This story was originally published July 2, 2015 at 3:07 PM with the headline "Belleville mosquitoes positive for West Nile; virus also found in Monroe County."