Explainer-What is Shamonda virus and what are the risks to humans and animals?

PARIS, Oct 22 (Reuters) France has reported the first known human case of Shamonda virus in a patient who died, raising questions about the risks posed by a livestock virus that has reached ​Europe this year decades after first being detected in Nigeria. WHAT IS ‌SHAMONDA VIRUS? Shamonda is transmitted by biting midges and mainly affects cattle, though infections have also been identified in sheep, goats, horses and alpacas. It belongs to the same group as Schmallenberg virus, which causes reproductive disorders in livestock. WHERE HAS IT SPREAD? First detected in cattle in Nigeria ‌in ​1965, it has since been found in parts ⁠of Africa and Asia. First identified ⁠in Europe in late July, by October 20 cases had been reported in more than a dozen European countries including in top cattle breeders France, Germany, Spain and Ireland. France said the virus had been likely been circulating ​in the country since the spring. HOW DANGEROUS IS IT FOR ANIMALS? Symptoms include fever, diarrhoea