Survey to determine the farm-level impact of Schmallenberg virus during the 2016-2017 United Kingdom lambing season.

Schmallenberg virus (SBV) causes abortions, stillbirths and fetal malformations in naïve ruminants. The impact of the initial outbreak (2011/2012) on British sheep farms has been previously investigated, with higher farmer perceived impacts and increased lamb and ewe mortality reported on SBV-affected farms. After several years of low, or no, circulation the UK sheep flock once again became vulnerable to SBV infection.

A freedom from disease study: Schmallenberg virus in the south of England in 2015.

In 2011-2012, northern European livestock faced a threat from a newly emerged virus, Schmallenberg virus (SBV), only a few years after a major outbreak of bluetongue serotype 8 (BTV-8). Like BTV-8, SBV is transmitted by Culicoides biting midges to ruminants and spread throughout Europe. SBV, however, spread faster, reaching the UK within three months of initial discovery.