Central Okanagan residents are being advised to avoid mosquito bites after a dead crow found in the region tested positive for the West Nile virus.

The virus is spread to humans and animals by mosquitoes that have bit infected birds.

Dr. Bonnie Henry, medical director at the B.C. Centre for Disease Control, said in a release that the test results were "a good indication that mosquitoes carrying the virus are active in the Central Okanagan."

The case is the first evidence of West Nile activity in B.C. this year. The province's first confirmed human infections were recorded last summer.

Two people living in the same Kelowna home tested positive in August. The next month, the virus was confirmed in two horses in the Fraser Valley.

Eighty per cent of humans who contract the virus show no symptoms. Those who do may experience headaches, sore joints and muscles, fever, fatigue and rashes.

One in 150 cases can be subject to neurological complications such as encephalitis, a brain inflammation, and meningitis, an infection in the brain lining.

Suggested methods of warding off mosquito bites include:

  • Wearing light-coloured long-sleeved shirts
  • Wearing long pants
  • Being extra vigilant in the evenings and early mornings, when mosquitoes are most active
  • Using federally registered mosquito repellants
  • Make sure screen doors and windows are securely fit

The virus was first identified in Uganda in 1937, and first appeared in North America in 1999 in New York City.

Since mosquitoes are attracted to standing water, make sure that any pools, empty containers and other backyard items that may collect water are drained at least once a week.

For more information, visit the BCCDC West Nile virus website.