France reports first human death linked to Shamonda virus, a livestock pathogen

A patient treated at the Hospices Civils de Lyon, in eastern France, died in early October 2026 after contracting Shamonda virus (SHAV), French health and agriculture ministries said. It is the first time the virus has been documented in a human, after decades of circulation among livestock in Africa and Asia.

The patient was severely immunocompromised and was already being treated for a serious underlying illness, according to the French authorities. Reports citing French officials said the infection was followed by brain complications, though it has not been confirmed whether Shamonda virus caused or contributed to the death.

What is Shamonda virus

Shamonda virus was first isolated in cattle in Nigeria in 1965 and has since been detected across parts of Africa and Asia, according to the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH). It belongs to the Simbu serogroup of orthobunyaviruses, the same family as Schmallenberg virus, which emerged in Germany in 2011.

The virus spreads mainly through bites from Culicoides midges and primarily affects cattle, though it has also been found in sheep, goats, horses and alpacas, WOAH said. Infected animals can show fever, diarrhoea and reduced milk production; some European cases have also involved abortions and foetal malformations in pregnant animals. One French dairy farm study cited by the Irish Times found milk output fell by as much as 75% in affected herds. No commercial vaccine currently exists.

How the virus reached Europe

Shamonda virus was detected in European livestock for the first time in 2026, with clinical signs in cattle reported from June and laboratory confirmation following in late July. It has since been identified in animals in at least a dozen European countries and territories, including Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain and Jersey. Researchers have identified two circulating variants in Europe, designated SHAV-EU1 and SHAV-EU2.

How the patient may have been infected

French authorities said the working hypothesis is that the patient was infected through the bite of a Culicoides midge in eastern France, a region where the virus had been detected in animals during spring and summer 2026. The exact species of midge involved has not been identified, and investigators are still trying to confirm how transmission to a human occurred.

Official response and risk assessment

French health and agriculture ministries described the case as an exceptional one, noting that it occurred in a severely immunocompromised patient. They added that despite decades of circulation of Shamonda virus in Africa and Asia, no human cases had been documented until now.

The ECDC said it is coordinating with French authorities and European partners to assess the potential public health implications, and confirmed that investigations are ongoing into whether the virus caused or contributed to the patient's death and how the infection was acquired. The World Health Organization has also been informed, according to French authorities.

What remains unknown

• Whether Shamonda virus directly caused the patient's death or was a contributing factor alongside the pre-existing immunodeficiency.
• The exact species of midge responsible and the precise circumstances of transmission.
• Whether other, undetected human infections have occurred, particularly in immunocompromised people in affected regions.
• Whether the seasonal decline in midge activity as temperatures drop will reduce further transmission risk, as some health authorities have suggested.

Authorities have stressed that the case so far appears isolated and linked to the patient's compromised immune system, and that no additional human infections have been reported.