First report of bluetongue antibody in Chile

A sample of 1,752 bovine sera collected from 99 herds throughout the Tenth Region, Chile, from March 8 to November 20, 1982, was analyzed for bluetongue (BT) antibodies using the immunodiffusion (ID) test. The prevalence of BT virus (BTV) antibody was 19.6%. Sixty-four (64.6%) herds showed at least 1 positive animal, which suggests an important antibody distribution in the area. The examination of 500 sera of sheep in 14 herds indicated the following results: 8/500 animals were positive in 5/14 of the herds.