Detalle de: Flaviviruses in Game Birds, Southern Spain, 2011–2012

To the Editor: Certain arthropod-borne epornitic flaviviruses, namely, West Nile virus (WNV) and Usutu virus (USUV), have spread recently in parts of Europe (1,2).In southern Spain, the emergence of a third virus of this type, known as Bagaza virus (BAGV), is of concern (3).Because of the outbreaks in 2010 in Cádiz (southern Spain) of WNV infection, which affected birds, horses, and humans, and of BAGV infection, which affected game birds (partridges and pheasants), and the reported presence of USUV in mosquitoes in this area (4), a surveillance program was implemented in partridges and pheasants during the next hunting season (October 2011-February 2012) to assess the possible circulation of these 3 flaviviruses in the area.Serum samples and brain tissue from 159 hunted-harvested wild redlegged partridges (Alectoris rufa) and 13 common pheasants (Phasianus colchicus) were collected on 12 hunting properties from Cádiz (online Technical Appendix Figure, wwwnc.cdc.gov/