LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – The state reported that a mosquito sample from Lake County tested positive for West Nile Virus.

The sample was confirmed last week, officials reported. It was one of 10 such samples confirmed positive around the state.

So far this year, approximately 1,294 mosquito samples from 24 counties have tested positive for West Nile Virus, the California West Nile Virus Web site reported. That's up from the 1,051 reported at this time last year.

Other than mosquito samples, Lake has reported no other West Nile Virus-positive cases this year, with no local cases reported in humans, horses, birds, sentinel chickens or squirrels, the state reported.

The state said the number of counties impacted by West Nile Virus this year is 35, down from 42 last year.

Statewide, human cases are down – 82 this year versus 92 in 2009 – while sentinel chicken cases dropped from 422 in 2009 to 271 this year, with dead bird cases also down, from 504 to 401 over the year, according to state data.

Horse cases have gone up slightly, from 17 in 2009 to 19 this year, with the state also reporting that squirrel cases jumped from 10 last year to 21 this year.

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