A wild turkey in Burnham tested positive for the Eastern Equine Encephalitis virus, two state departments said, marking the latest development in what state public health officials say is an “active” mosquito-borne disease season in the Northeast.

The turkey in the Waldo County town was the first animal in Maine to test positive for the mosquito-borne virus this year, according to a news release Tuesday from the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention, which monitors the virus with the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife.

There have been no reported cases of the virus, known as EEE, in humans this year in Maine, the Maine CDC said.

The virus spreads to humans and animals through infected mosquitoes. It cannot spread from human to human or from human to animal.

While most cases in humans do not result in symptoms, the virus can cause severe symptoms, such as brain swelling, or encephalitis, and inflammation of the spinal cord, or meningitis, the Maine CDC said. In some cases, EEE can lead to death.

The detection of EEE in the turkey announced Tuesday marks the third mosquito-borne virus found in animals or mosquitoes this year, according to the Maine CDC. The state and the Northeast as a whole are experiencing an “active” season, the agency said.

At the end of July, the Maine CDC reported six cases of West Nile virus in birds across Maine. The agency was also investigating a case of the virus in a human in Waldo County who was believed to have acquired it out of state.

This year, as of Tuesday, the Maine CDC and the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife say they have found West Nile virus in 15 birds, EEE in one bird and Jamestown Canyon virus in four mosquito pools in the state, the news release said. A mosquito pool is a group of up to 50 mosquitos tested at various sites during routine surveillance.

“This is the earliest in the year that reports of all three mosquito-borne viruses endemic to Maine have been detected in the state either in mosquito pools or animals,” the Maine CDC said. “This is the second consecutive year that all three viruses have been detected in Maine.”

A Maine CDC spokesperson did not respond by Tuesday evening to questions sent via email about the geographic distribution of reported cases and factors that may have led to the early and active mosquito-borne disease season.

To protect against the diseases, public health officials recommend wearing long sleeves, using federally approved repellents on skin and clothes, using screens on windows and doors, and draining artificial sources of standing water where mosquitoes may lay eggs. Mosquitoes are most active at dusk and dawn, so precautions are especially encouraged at those times, the Maine CDC said.

“Mosquitoes are a nuisance, yes, but they can also carry dangerous diseases if an infected bug bites a person or an animal,” Maine CDC Director Dr. Puthiery Va said in a statement. “We want Maine people and visitors to be aware of the elevated mosquito activity and take precautions to protect themselves and their loved ones.”