A potentially deadly virus spread by ticks seems to have established a foothold in New York, recent research shows. Scientists at Stony Brook University and others studied the blood of New York residents with suspected tickborne illness. They identified at least one confirmed case of the Bourbon virus in a Long Island man, who ended up hospitalized but survived his ordeal. Though human cases of Bourbon virus are rarely reported, it’s probably happening more often than assumed, the researchers say. “There are a lot of lone star ticks in New York and in the Northeast, we have dense populations, and when someone is infected with Bourbon virus symptoms they are similar to other tick-born infections,” said lead researcher Luis Marcos, director of the Tickborne Disease Clinic at Stony Brook, in a statement from the university. “For these reasons, the Bourbon virus is likely more prevalent than we think in our region and other cases are likely not being diagnosed.” The Bourbon virus The Bourbon virus is named after Bourbon County, Kansas, where it was first discovered in a human patient in 2014 (the patient ultimately died 11 days after becoming sick). Symptoms of infection include fever, fatigue, and body aches, as well as nausea and vomiting; people can also develop low platelet and white blood cell levels. Its primary vector is the lone star tick (Amblyomma americanum). There are no specific treatments or vaccines for Bourbon.