Is Largemouth Bass Virus a new disease?
No one knows. Because LMBV has been confirmed in so many places at nearly the same time, some scientists suspect the virus has been around for a while. Others suggest that “genetic sequencing information” indicates that it may be relatively new. Recent evidence suggests that the virus was present during 1991 in Florida’s Lake Weir. 4. Where has Largemouth Bass Virus been found? Since 1995, LMBV has been found in 17 states: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia. Other states have monitored for the virus, but did not find it. Others plan to do so in 2002. Between March and November 2000, researchers examined 3,476 largemouth bass and related sunfish species in nine southeastern states, according to the federal Warm Springs Fish Health Center. Of those, 464, or 13 percent, tested positive for LMBV. Fish kills attributable to LMBV have been confir
