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As summer heats up in Canada, the mosquito population is on the rise, bringing with it an increased risk of West Nile virus, a potentially deadly disease.

As summer heats up in Canada, the mosquito population is on the rise, bringing with it an increased risk of West Nile virus, a potentially deadly disease.

This season, the most recent West Nile virus case in Canada was reported in Ottawa. On July 19, Ottawa Public Health confirmed the infection in a resident. The agency also confirmed the first positive mosquito testing pool in the area since the annual monitoring program began on June 1.

“West Nile virus is a mosquito-borne virus that was introduced to Canada in the early 2000s. It flared up quite a bit for the first little bit as it was spreading through the region and has since kind of died back a little bit, but it’s still prevalent throughout, most of Eastern Canada and into the Prairies,” Morgan Jackson, a Montreal-based entomologist, told Global News.

“And it’s a virus that primarily infects birds … like blue jays and ravens and crows. But when it does get into people and also some livestock, it can cause us to get sick as well.”

Since the virus arrived in Canada in 2002, it has spread in all provinces except for Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador, according to Infection Prevention and Control Canada (IPAC). Since then, the number of cases each year has varied widely, ranging from more than 2,400 cases across the country to as few as five.

The latest preliminary data from Health Canada shows that in 2022 there were 47 cases.

However, the agency noted that surveillance captures only a fraction of West Nile virus cases in Canada. The actual number of infections is likely higher.

“This summer, the numbers are very low across Canada. But it’s still being found in mosquito populations and is still being found in dead birds across the country  So there is still a prevalent and ongoing risk,” Jackson said.