Qurexa Logo
Qurexa

Trust. Care. Deliver.

Back to Blog & Insights
Lifestyle

A virus nobody here was looking for has turned up in Jersey

Qurexa Editorial Team27 September 20266 min read 0 0
A virus nobody here was looking for has turned up in Jersey

What happened

On 24 September 2026, the Animal and Plant Health Agency announced that Shamonda virus had been detected in Jersey. The detection itself was made in August 2026. Shamonda virus — often shortened to SHAV — is spread by Culicoides biting midges, the same tiny flies that carry bluetongue. It is not spread from animal to animal by contact. It belongs to the same family as Schmallenberg virus, which arrived in northern Europe in 2011 and swept through British sheep and cattle flocks in the years afterwards. Anyone who was farming then will remember it. The signs in infected animals include fever, diarrhoea, lethargy and reduced milk production. More seriously, it can cause abortions and congenital abnormalities — lambs and calves born deformed or not born alive at all. Cattle are the main species affected. But the virus has also been detected in sheep, goats, alpacas and horses across several European countries. In Germany and Switzerland, horses have shown neurological disease. APHA is encouraging investigation of livestock and equine cases with signs consistent with SHAV infection. Owners who are worried should contact their own vet. Testing is available through APHA's Veterinary Investigation Centres and through Equine Infectious Disease Surveillance.

Why this matters

Let us deal with the question most readers will have first, because it is the important one. This is not a threat to human health. Shamonda virus belongs to the Simbu serogroup of orthobunyaviruses. On current scientific understanding, Simbu serogroup viruses are not generally considered zoonotic — meaning they do not pass from animals to people — and do not pose a significant risk of infection to humans. The most closely related viruses to Schmallenberg, which include Shamonda, do not cause disease in people. When Schmallenberg virus swept through European livestock, investigations found no evidence it was transmitted to humans. So this is a farming story and an animal welfare story, not a public health scare. That distinction is worth holding onto, because emerging animal viruses are often reported in a way that blurs it. Why it matters anyway: Jersey is close. A midge-borne virus reaching the Channel Islands means the vector and the conditions to carry it are present in this part of Europe. Bluetongue has already shown what that can mean for British livestock, with thousands of confirmed cases across England, Wales and Scotland in the current season. And the welfare cost is real. Abortions and deformed newborns are among the hardest things a livestock keeper deals with. For a small farm, a bad lambing can be the difference between a viable year and an unviable one.

What the evidence actually says

Being precise here matters, because this is a virus at an early stage of being understood in this region. What is established: SHAV has been known since the 1960s. It is carried by Culicoides midges. It affects ruminants, principally cattle. Signs include fever, diarrhoea, lethargy, reduced milk yield, abortion and congenital abnormalities. What is newer: in early August 2026, Germany's Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut identified a new Simbu serogroup orthobunyavirus in cattle in southern Germany, closely related to Shamonda virus. The Jersey detection followed in the same month. What is less certain: the picture in horses. Neurological disease has been reported in horses in Germany and Switzerland. Reported association is not the same as proven cause, and the extent of equine involvement is still being worked out. That is precisely why APHA is asking vets to investigate and test suspicious cases — surveillance is how the picture gets filled in. What is not known: how widely SHAV is already circulating in the British Isles. A first detection tells you the virus is present somewhere. It does not tell you how far it has spread, because you only find what you look for. If more cases are confirmed in coming months, that may reflect better looking as much as wider spread. The APHA announcement does not name individual officials and does not include case numbers beyond the Jersey detection.

Practical advice

This advice is mainly for people who keep animals, but the first point applies to everyone. 1. If you do not keep livestock or horses, there is no action for you to take. This virus is not considered a risk to human health, and there is no food safety issue attached to it in the announcement. 2. If you keep cattle, sheep, goats, alpacas or horses, know the signs: unexplained fever, diarrhoea, lethargy, a drop in milk yield, and — critically — abortions or abnormal newborns. In horses, unexplained neurological signs. 3. Call your own vet, not a helpline, if you see these signs. APHA is explicit that concerned keepers should contact their private veterinary surgeon. Your vet can arrange testing through APHA's Veterinary Investigation Centres or, for horses, Equine Infectious Disease Surveillance. 4. Report and test rather than wait and see. Surveillance only works if cases get investigated. A negative result is useful information; an uninvestigated case is not. 5. Reduce midge exposure where you reasonably can. Midges are most active around dawn and dusk. Housing animals at those times, and reducing standing water and muck where midges breed, both help. These are the same measures that reduce bluetongue risk, so they do double duty. 6. Keep good records of abortions and stillbirths with dates. Patterns across a season are far more informative than single events, and your vet will thank you for them. 7. Look after yourself too. A difficult lambing or calving season is genuinely hard on the people managing it. Farming charities such as the Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution and the Farming Community Network offer confidential support, and using them is sensible rather than weak.

What to know

Shamonda virus, spread by Culicoides biting midges, was detected in Jersey in August 2026 and announced by APHA on 24 September. It is in the same family as Schmallenberg virus, which spread through European livestock from 2011. It mainly affects cattle but has been found in sheep, goats, alpacas and horses across Europe, with neurological disease reported in horses in Germany and Switzerland. Signs include fever, diarrhoea, lethargy, reduced milk yield, abortions and congenital abnormalities. On current scientific understanding, Simbu serogroup viruses including Shamonda are not considered zoonotic and do not pose a significant risk to humans. This is an animal health story. APHA wants suspicious cases investigated. If you keep livestock or horses and see these signs, contact your own vet, who can arrange testing. Reducing midge exposure at dawn and dusk helps against this and against bluetongue. Sources: Animal and Plant Health Agency, 'Emerging Shamonda virus detected in Jersey', 24 September 2026, https://www.gov.uk/government/news/emerging-shamonda-virus-detected-in-jersey ; Friedrich-Loeffler-Institut, 'Shamonda virus' animal disease situation page, https://www.fli.de/en/news/animal-disease-situation/shamonda-virus/ ; Reusken C et al., 'Lack of Evidence for Zoonotic Transmission of Schmallenberg Virus', Emerging Infectious Diseases, Vol 18 No 11, November 2012, https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/18/11/12-0650_article This article is for general information and does not replace advice from a doctor, pharmacist or other qualified healthcare professional.

#Shamonda virus#livestock#midges#animal health#APHA#farming

Related articles