LOSTANT - The first bird to test positive for West Nile virus this year in Illinois was in the LaSalle County village of Lostant, fifty miles north of Bloomington.

Mosquito larvae containing the virus were reported about two weeks ago in Tazewell County, but no infected birds were reported at the time.

The first human cases are usually not reported before July, said according to the Illinois Department of Public Health. Last year, 20 humans became affected, with one death.

The dead crow was found June 1 in Lostant, state health officials announced Friday.

West Nile Virus is a mosquito-borne disease that can cause encephalitis, a sometimes fatal brain inflammation.

Mosquitoes get the disease from birds and transmit it to humans through a bite.