🕷️ Crawler Inspector

URL Lookup

Direct Parameter Lookup

Raw Queries and Responses

1. Shard Calculation

Query:

Response:

Calculated Shard: 16 (from laksa032)

2. Crawled Status Check

Query:

curl -X POST \
  'http://laksa016.int.ahrefs:8124/' \
  -H 'Content-Type: text/plain' \
  -H 'X-ClickHouse-Database: crawler3' \
  -H 'Authorization: Basic YXBpOg==' \
  -d 'SELECT getAhrefsURLFromUnparsed(src_unparsed) AS found_url, ifNull(toUnixTimestamp(download_stamp), 0) AS crawl_time, ifNull(toUnixTimestamp(props_url_first_seen), 0) AS first_indexed_time, download_http_code AS http_code, src_unparsed AS src_unparsed, src_root_hash AS src_root_hash, history_drop_reason AS history_drop_reason, meta_title AS meta_title, meta_descriptions AS meta_descriptions, attrs_boilerpipe_text AS attrs_boilerpipe_text, attrs_markdown AS attrs_markdown, attrs_readable_markdown AS attrs_readable_markdown, meta_canonical AS meta_canonical FROM crawler3.page_info_local FINAL PREWHERE (src_root_hash, src_unparsed) IN ((getAhrefsRootHashFromUnparsed(getAhrefsUnparsedNoserviceFromURL(\'https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-35431181\')), getAhrefsUnparsedNoserviceFromURL(\'https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-35431181\'))) FORMAT JSONEachRow'

Response:

{"found_url":"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-africa-35431181","crawl_time":1773961444,"first_indexed_time":1529490546,"http_code":200,"src_unparsed":"com,bbc!www,\/news\/world-africa-35431181 s443","src_root_hash":"1643509356818581016","history_drop_reason":null,"meta_title":"Zika virus: Inside Uganda's forest where the disease originates - BBC News","meta_descriptions":["The BBC's Catherine Byaruhanga visits a Ugandan forest where the deadly Zika virus was first discovered seven decades ago."],"attrs_boilerpipe_text":"Media caption,\nInside the Zika forest\nThe Zika virus, which has been linked to thousands of babies being born with underdeveloped brains in Brazil, was discovered in a forest in the East African state of Uganda seven decades ago. BBC Africa's Catherine Byaruhanga visited the forest.\nThe Zika forest is not well known in Uganda, and most people will be hard-pushed to tell you where it is. The word itself means overgrown in the local Luganda language.\nThere is dense vegetation, a wide range of trees and lots of small animals. The only people you are likely to meet here are the forest-keeper and his family. They live in a small house made of corrugated iron sheets.\nThe virus was discovered in the forest - then a hub of scientific research in East Africa - in 1947 by accident by Ugandan, American and European scientists working on another viral disease, Yellow Fever.\nWhile testing monkeys in the forest the scientists, whose research had been funded for a decade by the Rockefeller Foundation, came across a new microorganism, which they named Zika.\nWhat is the Zika virus:\nImage source,\nUS CDC\nSpread by the\nAedes aegypti\nmosquito, which also carries Dengue Fever and Yellow Fever\nFirst discovered in Uganda in 1947 but now spreading in Latin America\nScientists say there is growing evidence of a link to microcephaly, that leads to babies being born with small heads\nCan lead to fever and a rash but most people show no symptoms, and there is no known cure\nOnly way to fight Zika is to clear stagnant water where mosquitoes breed, and protect against mosquito bites\nOnly two cases of the virus have been confirmed in Uganda in the past seven decades.\nThis is because the types of mosquitoes that would transmit the virus to humans don't often come into contact with the general population, says Dr Julius Lutwama, a leading virologist at the Uganda Virus Research Institute.\n\"The\nAedes\nwe have,\nAedes aegypti formosus\n, normally does not bite humans. And then we have other [mosquitoes] which live in the forests and prefer to bite at dusk and dawn,\" Dr Lutwama adds.\nThis is in contrast to Latin America, where a different sub species,\nAedes aegypti aegypti\n, is spreading the Zika virus.\nImage caption,\nNot many Ugandans know where the Zika forest is\nImage source,\nAFP\nImage caption,\nThe virus is suspected of leading to babies being born with small heads\nMuch of the Zika forest, which is along the highway between the capital Kampala and Entebbe International Airport, has been lost to development projects, as Uganda's population grows.\nAll around it new big houses with freshly tiled roofs are springing up. What's left of it is gazetted for scientific research.\nSeveral kilometres up the main road is the Uganda Virus Research Institute. It's a massive campus on a hill overlooking Lake Victoria.\nSecurity is tight here because samples of dangerous organisms like Ebola, Yellow Fever and Zika are stored there.\nThis is also the only place in Uganda where you can test for Zika.\nBut as Dr John Kayuma, one of the laboratory managers told me, one of the reasons why there are few recorded cases in Uganda could be because not many people have been tested for it.\n\"It is possible that there could be several people, or so many people out there with the Zika virus infection, but because many people do not seek treatment in the hospitals, we could be missing out.\n\"And also the surveillance has probably not picked them out. There's a possibility that there are more cases out there.\"\nIn a few months the government will be starting a study to find out how widespread the Zika virus and other flaviviruses like Yellow Fever, Dengue and West Nile are amongst the population.\nIn the meantime, Dr Lutwama and his team say they are keeping an eye on the type of mosquitoes in the country in case any of the ones that are good at spreading the disease enter Uganda.","attrs_markdown":"[BBC Homepage](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/)\n\n- [Skip to content](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-africa-35431181#main-heading)\n- [Accessibility Help](https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/accessibility\/)\n\n- [Sign in](https:\/\/session.bbc.com\/session?lang=en-GB&ptrt=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbc.com%2Fnews%2Fworld-africa-35431181&sequenceId=756a6a9b-07ac-411f-9b3c-d2f37ac070af)\n\n- [Home](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/)\n- [News](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news)\n- [Sport](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/sport)\n- [Business](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/business)\n- [Innovation](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/innovation)\n- [Culture](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/culture)\n- [Travel](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/travel)\n- [Earth](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/future-planet)\n- [Audio](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/audio)\n- [Video](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/video)\n- [Live](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/live)\n- [More menu](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-africa-35431181#global-navigation-more-menu)\n\n[More menu](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-africa-35431181#global-navigation-more-menu)\n\n[Search BBC](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/search?d=NEWS_GNL)\n\n- [Home](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/)\n- [News](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news)\n- [Sport](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/sport)\n- [Business](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/business)\n- [Innovation](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/innovation)\n- [Culture](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/culture)\n- [Travel](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/travel)\n- [Earth](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/future-planet)\n- [Audio](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/audio)\n- [Video](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/video)\n- [Live](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/live)\n\nClose menu\n\n[BBC News](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news)\n\n[Menu](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-africa-35431181#product-navigation-menu)\n\n- [Home](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news)\n- [Climate](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/topics\/cmj34zmwm1zt)\n- [World](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world)\n- [UK](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/uk)\n- [Business](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/business)\n- [Tech](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/technology)\n- [Science](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/science_and_environment)\n- [Entertainment & Arts](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/entertainment_and_arts)\n- [Health](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/health)\n- [In Pictures](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/in_pictures)\n\n[More](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-africa-35431181#product-navigation-more-menu)\n\n- [BBC Verify](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/bbcverify)\n- [Newsbeat](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/newsbeat)\n\n- [World](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world)\n- [Africa](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world\/africa)\n- [Asia](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world\/asia)\n- [Australia](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world\/australia)\n- [Europe](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world\/europe)\n- [Latin America](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world\/latin_america)\n- [Middle East](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world\/middle_east)\n- [US & Canada](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world\/us_and_canada)\n\n# Zika virus: Inside Uganda's forest where the disease originates\nShare\n\nclose panel\n\nShare page\n\nCopy link\n\n[About sharing](https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/usingthebbc\/terms\/can-i-share-things-from-the-bbc)\n\n## To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser.\nThis video can not be played\n\nMedia caption,\n\nInside the Zika forest\n\n**The Zika virus, which has been linked to thousands of babies being born with underdeveloped brains in Brazil, was discovered in a forest in the East African state of Uganda seven decades ago. BBC Africa's Catherine Byaruhanga visited the forest.**\n\nThe Zika forest is not well known in Uganda, and most people will be hard-pushed to tell you where it is. The word itself means overgrown in the local Luganda language.\n\nThere is dense vegetation, a wide range of trees and lots of small animals. The only people you are likely to meet here are the forest-keeper and his family. They live in a small house made of corrugated iron sheets.\n\nThe virus was discovered in the forest - then a hub of scientific research in East Africa - in 1947 by accident by Ugandan, American and European scientists working on another viral disease, Yellow Fever.\n\nWhile testing monkeys in the forest the scientists, whose research had been funded for a decade by the Rockefeller Foundation, came across a new microorganism, which they named Zika.\n\n![Grey line](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/464\/cpsprodpb\/157D\/production\/_87910550_464x2.jpg)\n\n## What is the Zika virus:\n![Female Aedes aegypti mosquito in the process of acquiring a blood meal from a human host.](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/976\/cpsprodpb\/2A2E\/production\/_87989701_hi031012828.jpg)\n\nImage source, US CDC\n\n- Spread by the *Aedes aegypti* mosquito, which also carries Dengue Fever and Yellow Fever\n- First discovered in Uganda in 1947 but now spreading in Latin America\n- Scientists say there is growing evidence of a link to microcephaly, that leads to babies being born with small heads\n- Can lead to fever and a rash but most people show no symptoms, and there is no known cure\n- Only way to fight Zika is to clear stagnant water where mosquitoes breed, and protect against mosquito bites\n\n[Zika: What you need to know](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/health-35370848)\n\n['The worst day of my life'](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-latin-america-35406933)\n\n![Grey line](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/464\/cpsprodpb\/157D\/production\/_87910550_464x2.jpg)\n\nOnly two cases of the virus have been confirmed in Uganda in the past seven decades.\n\nThis is because the types of mosquitoes that would transmit the virus to humans don't often come into contact with the general population, says Dr Julius Lutwama, a leading virologist at the Uganda Virus Research Institute.\n\n\"The *Aedes* we have, *Aedes aegypti formosus*, normally does not bite humans. And then we have other \\[mosquitoes\\] which live in the forests and prefer to bite at dusk and dawn,\" Dr Lutwama adds.\n\nThis is in contrast to Latin America, where a different sub species, *Aedes aegypti aegypti*, is spreading the Zika virus.\n\n![Zika forest](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/976\/cpsprodpb\/128E8\/production\/_87980067_20160128074342-3-3.jpg)\n\nImage caption,\n\nNot many Ugandans know where the Zika forest is\n\n![A baby born with Zika virus in Brazil](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/976\/cpsprodpb\/784E\/production\/_87989703_hi031176189.jpg)\n\nImage source, AFP\n\nImage caption,\n\nThe virus is suspected of leading to babies being born with small heads\n\nMuch of the Zika forest, which is along the highway between the capital Kampala and Entebbe International Airport, has been lost to development projects, as Uganda's population grows.\n\nAll around it new big houses with freshly tiled roofs are springing up. What's left of it is gazetted for scientific research.\n\nSeveral kilometres up the main road is the Uganda Virus Research Institute. It's a massive campus on a hill overlooking Lake Victoria.\n\nSecurity is tight here because samples of dangerous organisms like Ebola, Yellow Fever and Zika are stored there.\n\nThis is also the only place in Uganda where you can test for Zika.\n\n![Zika spread](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/625\/cpsprodpb\/18572\/production\/_87989699_zika_virus_spread_624.png)\n\n- [The mosquito menace explained](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/health-35427491)\n\nBut as Dr John Kayuma, one of the laboratory managers told me, one of the reasons why there are few recorded cases in Uganda could be because not many people have been tested for it.\n\n\"It is possible that there could be several people, or so many people out there with the Zika virus infection, but because many people do not seek treatment in the hospitals, we could be missing out.\n\n\"And also the surveillance has probably not picked them out. There's a possibility that there are more cases out there.\"\n\nIn a few months the government will be starting a study to find out how widespread the Zika virus and other flaviviruses like Yellow Fever, Dengue and West Nile are amongst the population.\n\nIn the meantime, Dr Lutwama and his team say they are keeping an eye on the type of mosquitoes in the country in case any of the ones that are good at spreading the disease enter Uganda.\n\n## Top stories\n- [Live. Blasts heard over Jerusalem as new strikes launched on Tehran](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/live\/c24d410m3g4t)\n- [Are US and Israel aligned on Iran war? Deciphering Trump's post after gas field attacks](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/c8x7leknlywo)\n- [Faisal Islam: Iran war is having a dramatic effect on the UK economy](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/c33lnd1gxxro)\n\n## More to explore\n- [Why are gas prices soaring and how could it affect you?](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/cj6d66w0995o)\n  \n  ![QatarEnergy's operating facilities in Ras Laffan Industrial City, Qatar, seen on 3 March, 2026](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/385\/cpsprodpb\/e530\/live\/b7d99350-2388-11f1-934f-036468834728.jpg)\n- [Crimson Desert gives gamers absolutely everything - but is that its strength or weakness?](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/c0e5ee0w21lo)\n  \n  ![An artistic image shows Kliff, the hero of Crimson Desert, clad in a suit of leather armour, holding a large shield and heroically wielding a sword over his head. Behind him, a montage of secondary characters and a dragon appear amid an explosion of crimson paint.](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/385\/cpsprodpb\/5c08\/live\/1ceb67b0-2388-11f1-bbc4-054d2cdbb6e0.jpg)\n- [How Europe sleepwalked into yet another energy crisis](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/c24de9e97vno)\n  \n  ![A montage image of French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and in the background a surface level view of a working coal power station in England and an oil refinery in Mumbai](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/385\/cpsprodpb\/2972\/live\/788f41d0-22b7-11f1-a79a-77e93010d956.jpg)\n- [The Man Utd prodigy still too young to play senior football](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/sport\/football\/articles\/ckg8gp88m8xo)\n  \n  ![JJ Gabriel (centre) celebrates Junior Brown's (right) match winner with Jay McEvoy for Manchester United in the FA Youth Cup at Old Trafford](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/385\/cpsprodpb\/4bf3\/live\/2c6706a0-2319-11f1-934f-036468834728.jpg)\n- [King opens world's longest coastal path around England](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/cy0dxexdd8xo)\n  \n  ![King Charles III stands in front of cliffs as he walks the King Charles III England Coast Path at Seven Sisters National Nature Reserve.](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/385\/cpsprodpb\/14d0\/live\/b5438050-23a2-11f1-934f-036468834728.jpg)\n- [Why has this meningitis outbreak spread so fast?](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/cqlglkprv0qo)\n  \n  ![Four students walking side-by-side wearing blue face masks. Two boys on the left of the image, two girls on the right.](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/385\/cpsprodpb\/40be\/live\/a3ef0cc0-22df-11f1-9c64-25f36d76b36f.jpg)\n- [Ryan Gosling on bringing humour to sci-fi adventure Project Hail Mary](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/cm2xrxp3kz0o)\n  \n  ![Picture of Ryan Gosling in a still from Project Hail Mary. He is wearing a suit jacket, shirt, tie and glasses and is holding a small globe toy.](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/385\/cpsprodpb\/3ad0\/live\/b38b6670-21e9-11f1-a42b-a3f1101f2a6d.jpg)\n- [Is government going wobbly on its migration plans?](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/cjenegnl0ngo)\n  \n  ![Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood walking to a car wearing dark brown glasses, red lipstick, and a light grey blazer. ](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/385\/cpsprodpb\/4f40\/live\/fc531d20-232a-11f1-a79a-77e93010d956.jpg)\n- [Off Air with Laura K: Get Laura Kuenssberg’s weekly newsletter emailed directly to you](https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/newsletters\/z3qtg2p)\n  \n  ![Laura Kuenssberg](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/385\/cpsprodpb\/5403\/live\/73cea3e0-58c1-11f0-9074-8989d8c97d87.png)\n\n## Elsewhere on the BBC\n- [Your first look at the new series of Race Across the World](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/iplayer\/episodes\/m0002tvs\/watch\/p0n5sdnf?at_mid=o0cKl9yGY7&at_campaign=Race_Across_The_World_S6_Trailer&at_medium=display_ad&at_campaign_type=owned&at_nation=NET&at_audience_id=SS&at_product=iplayer&at_brand=m0002tvs&at_ptr_name=bbc&at_ptr_type=media&at_format=image&at_objective=consumption&at_link_title=Race_Across_The_World_S6_Trailer&at_bbc_team=BBC)\n  \n  ![Race Across the World S6](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/480\/cpsprodpb\/07cf\/live\/de531230-22e4-11f1-a79a-77e93010d956.jpg)\n- [How Manchester rebuilt itself through sound](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/sounds\/play\/m002ssq4?at_mid=PXWJ6K3Uaj&at_campaign=The_Rise_and_Fall_of_Madchester&at_medium=display_ad&at_campaign_type=owned&at_nation=NET&at_audience_id=SS&at_product=sounds&at_brand=p0ftp7pt&at_ptr_name=bbc&at_ptr_type=media&at_format=image&at_objective=consumption&at_link_title=The_Rise_and_Fall_of_Madchester&at_bbc_team=BBC)\n  \n  ![The Rise and Fall of Madchester](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/480\/cpsprodpb\/8f53\/live\/1c4881c0-22a8-11f1-b297-95b0a0a8331e.jpg)\n- [Revisit This Life and celebrate 30 years of a 1990s classic](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/iplayer\/episode\/b0078010?at_mid=pzOrjPbDlf&at_campaign=This_Life_S1_E1&at_medium=display_ad&at_campaign_type=owned&at_nation=NET&at_audience_id=SS&at_product=iplayer&at_brand=b00pft4t&at_ptr_name=bbc&at_ptr_type=media&at_format=image&at_objective=consumption&at_link_title=This_Life_S1_E1&at_bbc_team=BBC)\n  \n  ![This Life](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/480\/cpsprodpb\/7b0c\/live\/97bf3c90-21d1-11f1-934f-036468834728.jpg)\n- [Was this 'brutally honest' memoir based on deception?](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/sounds\/play\/p0n79zmk?at_mid=W6qyPAiyLV&at_campaign=Secrets_of_the_Salt_Path_The_Dreamers&at_medium=display_ad&at_campaign_type=owned&at_nation=WLS&at_audience_id=SS&at_product=sounds&at_brand=p0n5p4w5&at_ptr_name=bbc&at_ptr_type=media&at_format=image&at_objective=consumption&at_link_title=Secrets_of_the_Salt_Path_The_Dreamers&at_bbc_team=BBC)\n  \n  ![Secrets of the Salt Path](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/480\/cpsprodpb\/346f\/live\/8928ab30-22a8-11f1-934f-036468834728.jpg)\n\n## Most read\n1. 1\n   \n   [Denmark planned to blow up Greenland runways if US invaded, reports say](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/c33ln4mp1p2o)\n2. 2\n   \n   [Bachelorette's new season pulled after Taylor Frankie Paul abuse allegations](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/cp9vryml4d1o)\n3. 3\n   \n   [Are US and Israel aligned on Iran war? Deciphering Trump's post after gas field attacks](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/c8x7leknlywo)\n4. 4\n   \n   [Faisal Islam: Iran war is having a dramatic effect on the UK economy](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/c33lnd1gxxro)\n5. 5\n   \n   [Reports of children as young as 11 abused in West Midlands mini-marts, BBC reveals](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/clyzy0y20qlo)\n6. 6\n   \n   [Badenoch backs Tory MP in row over Muslim prayer event](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/cx26gn64zyzo)\n7. 7\n   \n   [Facebook offering TikTok and YouTube creators \\$3,000 to post content](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/c895wwp3kqlo)\n8. 8\n   \n   [King opens world's longest coastal path around England](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/cy0dxexdd8xo)\n9. 9\n   \n   [Huge queues for jabs as meningitis vaccination scheme expanded](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/cwyk44px2j5o)\n10. 10\n    \n    [Stay at home advice questioned and rules too tough - key findings from Covid report](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/articles\/c87wg0lvnxjo)\n\n## BBC News Services\n- [On your mobile](https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/10628994)\n- [On smart speakers](https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/help-50068132)\n- [Get news alerts](https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/10628323)\n- [Contact BBC News](https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/20039682)\n\n- [Home](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/)\n- [News](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news)\n- [Sport](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/sport)\n- [Business](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/business)\n- [Innovation](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/innovation)\n- [Culture](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/culture)\n- [Travel](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/travel)\n- [Earth](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/future-planet)\n- [Audio](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/audio)\n- [Video](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/video)\n- [Live](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/live)\n\n- [Terms of Use](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/pages\/terms-of-use)\n- [About the BBC](https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/aboutthebbc)\n- [Privacy Policy](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/pages\/privacy-policy)\n- [Cookies](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/usingthebbc\/cookies)\n- [Accessibility Help](https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/accessibility)\n- [Parental Guidance](https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/iplayer\/guidance)\n- [Contact the BBC](https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/contact)\n- [BBC emails for you](https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/bbcnewsletter)\n- [Advertise with us](https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/advertisingcontact\/)\n- Do not share or sell my info\n\nCopyright © 2026 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. [Read about our approach to external linking.](https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/editorialguidelines\/guidance\/feeds-and-links)","attrs_readable_markdown":"Media caption,\n\nInside the Zika forest\n\n**The Zika virus, which has been linked to thousands of babies being born with underdeveloped brains in Brazil, was discovered in a forest in the East African state of Uganda seven decades ago. BBC Africa's Catherine Byaruhanga visited the forest.**\n\nThe Zika forest is not well known in Uganda, and most people will be hard-pushed to tell you where it is. The word itself means overgrown in the local Luganda language.\n\nThere is dense vegetation, a wide range of trees and lots of small animals. The only people you are likely to meet here are the forest-keeper and his family. They live in a small house made of corrugated iron sheets.\n\nThe virus was discovered in the forest - then a hub of scientific research in East Africa - in 1947 by accident by Ugandan, American and European scientists working on another viral disease, Yellow Fever.\n\nWhile testing monkeys in the forest the scientists, whose research had been funded for a decade by the Rockefeller Foundation, came across a new microorganism, which they named Zika.\n\n![Grey line](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/464\/cpsprodpb\/157D\/production\/_87910550_464x2.jpg)\n\nWhat is the Zika virus:\n\n![Female Aedes aegypti mosquito in the process of acquiring a blood meal from a human host.](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/976\/cpsprodpb\/2A2E\/production\/_87989701_hi031012828.jpg)Image source, US CDC\n\n- Spread by the *Aedes aegypti* mosquito, which also carries Dengue Fever and Yellow Fever\n- First discovered in Uganda in 1947 but now spreading in Latin America\n- Scientists say there is growing evidence of a link to microcephaly, that leads to babies being born with small heads\n- Can lead to fever and a rash but most people show no symptoms, and there is no known cure\n- Only way to fight Zika is to clear stagnant water where mosquitoes breed, and protect against mosquito bites\n\n![Grey line](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/464\/cpsprodpb\/157D\/production\/_87910550_464x2.jpg)\n\nOnly two cases of the virus have been confirmed in Uganda in the past seven decades.\n\nThis is because the types of mosquitoes that would transmit the virus to humans don't often come into contact with the general population, says Dr Julius Lutwama, a leading virologist at the Uganda Virus Research Institute.\n\n\"The *Aedes* we have, *Aedes aegypti formosus*, normally does not bite humans. And then we have other \\[mosquitoes\\] which live in the forests and prefer to bite at dusk and dawn,\" Dr Lutwama adds.\n\nThis is in contrast to Latin America, where a different sub species, *Aedes aegypti aegypti*, is spreading the Zika virus.\n\n![Zika forest](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/976\/cpsprodpb\/128E8\/production\/_87980067_20160128074342-3-3.jpg)\n\nImage caption,\n\nNot many Ugandans know where the Zika forest is\n\n![A baby born with Zika virus in Brazil](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/976\/cpsprodpb\/784E\/production\/_87989703_hi031176189.jpg)Image source, AFP\n\nImage caption,\n\nThe virus is suspected of leading to babies being born with small heads\n\nMuch of the Zika forest, which is along the highway between the capital Kampala and Entebbe International Airport, has been lost to development projects, as Uganda's population grows.\n\nAll around it new big houses with freshly tiled roofs are springing up. What's left of it is gazetted for scientific research.\n\nSeveral kilometres up the main road is the Uganda Virus Research Institute. It's a massive campus on a hill overlooking Lake Victoria.\n\nSecurity is tight here because samples of dangerous organisms like Ebola, Yellow Fever and Zika are stored there.\n\nThis is also the only place in Uganda where you can test for Zika.\n\n![Zika spread](https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/625\/cpsprodpb\/18572\/production\/_87989699_zika_virus_spread_624.png)\n\nBut as Dr John Kayuma, one of the laboratory managers told me, one of the reasons why there are few recorded cases in Uganda could be because not many people have been tested for it.\n\n\"It is possible that there could be several people, or so many people out there with the Zika virus infection, but because many people do not seek treatment in the hospitals, we could be missing out.\n\n\"And also the surveillance has probably not picked them out. There's a possibility that there are more cases out there.\"\n\nIn a few months the government will be starting a study to find out how widespread the Zika virus and other flaviviruses like Yellow Fever, Dengue and West Nile are amongst the population.\n\nIn the meantime, Dr Lutwama and his team say they are keeping an eye on the type of mosquitoes in the country in case any of the ones that are good at spreading the disease enter Uganda.","meta_canonical":null}

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Meta Title	Zika virus: Inside Uganda's forest where the disease originates - BBC News
Meta Description	The BBC's Catherine Byaruhanga visits a Ugandan forest where the deadly Zika virus was first discovered seven decades ago.
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Boilerpipe Text	Media caption, Inside the Zika forest The Zika virus, which has been linked to thousands of babies being born with underdeveloped brains in Brazil, was discovered in a forest in the East African state of Uganda seven decades ago. BBC Africa's Catherine Byaruhanga visited the forest. The Zika forest is not well known in Uganda, and most people will be hard-pushed to tell you where it is. The word itself means overgrown in the local Luganda language. There is dense vegetation, a wide range of trees and lots of small animals. The only people you are likely to meet here are the forest-keeper and his family. They live in a small house made of corrugated iron sheets. The virus was discovered in the forest - then a hub of scientific research in East Africa - in 1947 by accident by Ugandan, American and European scientists working on another viral disease, Yellow Fever. While testing monkeys in the forest the scientists, whose research had been funded for a decade by the Rockefeller Foundation, came across a new microorganism, which they named Zika. What is the Zika virus: Image source, US CDC Spread by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which also carries Dengue Fever and Yellow Fever First discovered in Uganda in 1947 but now spreading in Latin America Scientists say there is growing evidence of a link to microcephaly, that leads to babies being born with small heads Can lead to fever and a rash but most people show no symptoms, and there is no known cure Only way to fight Zika is to clear stagnant water where mosquitoes breed, and protect against mosquito bites Only two cases of the virus have been confirmed in Uganda in the past seven decades. This is because the types of mosquitoes that would transmit the virus to humans don't often come into contact with the general population, says Dr Julius Lutwama, a leading virologist at the Uganda Virus Research Institute. "The Aedes we have, Aedes aegypti formosus , normally does not bite humans. And then we have other [mosquitoes] which live in the forests and prefer to bite at dusk and dawn," Dr Lutwama adds. This is in contrast to Latin America, where a different sub species, Aedes aegypti aegypti , is spreading the Zika virus. Image caption, Not many Ugandans know where the Zika forest is Image source, AFP Image caption, The virus is suspected of leading to babies being born with small heads Much of the Zika forest, which is along the highway between the capital Kampala and Entebbe International Airport, has been lost to development projects, as Uganda's population grows. All around it new big houses with freshly tiled roofs are springing up. What's left of it is gazetted for scientific research. Several kilometres up the main road is the Uganda Virus Research Institute. It's a massive campus on a hill overlooking Lake Victoria. Security is tight here because samples of dangerous organisms like Ebola, Yellow Fever and Zika are stored there. This is also the only place in Uganda where you can test for Zika. But as Dr John Kayuma, one of the laboratory managers told me, one of the reasons why there are few recorded cases in Uganda could be because not many people have been tested for it. "It is possible that there could be several people, or so many people out there with the Zika virus infection, but because many people do not seek treatment in the hospitals, we could be missing out. "And also the surveillance has probably not picked them out. There's a possibility that there are more cases out there." In a few months the government will be starting a study to find out how widespread the Zika virus and other flaviviruses like Yellow Fever, Dengue and West Nile are amongst the population. In the meantime, Dr Lutwama and his team say they are keeping an eye on the type of mosquitoes in the country in case any of the ones that are good at spreading the disease enter Uganda.
Markdown	[BBC Homepage](https://www.bbc.com/) - [Skip to content](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-35431181#main-heading) - [Accessibility Help](https://www.bbc.co.uk/accessibility/) - [Sign in](https://session.bbc.com/session?lang=en-GB&ptrt=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bbc.com%2Fnews%2Fworld-africa-35431181&sequenceId=756a6a9b-07ac-411f-9b3c-d2f37ac070af) - [Home](https://www.bbc.com/) - [News](https://www.bbc.com/news) - [Sport](https://www.bbc.com/sport) - [Business](https://www.bbc.com/business) - [Innovation](https://www.bbc.com/innovation) - [Culture](https://www.bbc.com/culture) - [Travel](https://www.bbc.com/travel) - [Earth](https://www.bbc.com/future-planet) - [Audio](https://www.bbc.com/audio) - [Video](https://www.bbc.com/video) - [Live](https://www.bbc.com/live) - [More menu](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-35431181#global-navigation-more-menu) [More menu](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-35431181#global-navigation-more-menu) [Search BBC](https://www.bbc.com/search?d=NEWS_GNL) - [Home](https://www.bbc.com/) - [News](https://www.bbc.com/news) - [Sport](https://www.bbc.com/sport) - [Business](https://www.bbc.com/business) - [Innovation](https://www.bbc.com/innovation) - [Culture](https://www.bbc.com/culture) - [Travel](https://www.bbc.com/travel) - [Earth](https://www.bbc.com/future-planet) - [Audio](https://www.bbc.com/audio) - [Video](https://www.bbc.com/video) - [Live](https://www.bbc.com/live) Close menu [BBC News](https://www.bbc.com/news) [Menu](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-35431181#product-navigation-menu) - [Home](https://www.bbc.com/news) - [Climate](https://www.bbc.com/news/topics/cmj34zmwm1zt) - [World](https://www.bbc.com/news/world) - [UK](https://www.bbc.com/news/uk) - [Business](https://www.bbc.com/news/business) - [Tech](https://www.bbc.com/news/technology) - [Science](https://www.bbc.com/news/science_and_environment) - [Entertainment & Arts](https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment_and_arts) - [Health](https://www.bbc.com/news/health) - [In Pictures](https://www.bbc.com/news/in_pictures) [More](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-35431181#product-navigation-more-menu) - [BBC Verify](https://www.bbc.com/news/bbcverify) - [Newsbeat](https://www.bbc.com/news/newsbeat) - [World](https://www.bbc.com/news/world) - [Africa](https://www.bbc.com/news/world/africa) - [Asia](https://www.bbc.com/news/world/asia) - [Australia](https://www.bbc.com/news/world/australia) - [Europe](https://www.bbc.com/news/world/europe) - [Latin America](https://www.bbc.com/news/world/latin_america) - [Middle East](https://www.bbc.com/news/world/middle_east) - [US & Canada](https://www.bbc.com/news/world/us_and_canada) # Zika virus: Inside Uganda's forest where the disease originates Share close panel Share page Copy link [About sharing](https://www.bbc.co.uk/usingthebbc/terms/can-i-share-things-from-the-bbc) ## To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. This video can not be played Media caption, Inside the Zika forest The Zika virus, which has been linked to thousands of babies being born with underdeveloped brains in Brazil, was discovered in a forest in the East African state of Uganda seven decades ago. BBC Africa's Catherine Byaruhanga visited the forest. The Zika forest is not well known in Uganda, and most people will be hard-pushed to tell you where it is. The word itself means overgrown in the local Luganda language. There is dense vegetation, a wide range of trees and lots of small animals. The only people you are likely to meet here are the forest-keeper and his family. They live in a small house made of corrugated iron sheets. The virus was discovered in the forest - then a hub of scientific research in East Africa - in 1947 by accident by Ugandan, American and European scientists working on another viral disease, Yellow Fever. While testing monkeys in the forest the scientists, whose research had been funded for a decade by the Rockefeller Foundation, came across a new microorganism, which they named Zika. ![Grey line](https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/ace/standard/464/cpsprodpb/157D/production/_87910550_464x2.jpg) ## What is the Zika virus: ![Female Aedes aegypti mosquito in the process of acquiring a blood meal from a human host.](https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/ace/standard/976/cpsprodpb/2A2E/production/_87989701_hi031012828.jpg) Image source, US CDC - Spread by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which also carries Dengue Fever and Yellow Fever - First discovered in Uganda in 1947 but now spreading in Latin America - Scientists say there is growing evidence of a link to microcephaly, that leads to babies being born with small heads - Can lead to fever and a rash but most people show no symptoms, and there is no known cure - Only way to fight Zika is to clear stagnant water where mosquitoes breed, and protect against mosquito bites [Zika: What you need to know](https://www.bbc.com/news/health-35370848) ['The worst day of my life'](https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-35406933) ![Grey line](https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/ace/standard/464/cpsprodpb/157D/production/_87910550_464x2.jpg) Only two cases of the virus have been confirmed in Uganda in the past seven decades. This is because the types of mosquitoes that would transmit the virus to humans don't often come into contact with the general population, says Dr Julius Lutwama, a leading virologist at the Uganda Virus Research Institute. "The Aedes we have, Aedes aegypti formosus, normally does not bite humans. And then we have other \[mosquitoes\] which live in the forests and prefer to bite at dusk and dawn," Dr Lutwama adds. This is in contrast to Latin America, where a different sub species, Aedes aegypti aegypti, is spreading the Zika virus. ![Zika forest](https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/ace/standard/976/cpsprodpb/128E8/production/_87980067_20160128074342-3-3.jpg) Image caption, Not many Ugandans know where the Zika forest is ![A baby born with Zika virus in Brazil](https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/ace/standard/976/cpsprodpb/784E/production/_87989703_hi031176189.jpg) Image source, AFP Image caption, The virus is suspected of leading to babies being born with small heads Much of the Zika forest, which is along the highway between the capital Kampala and Entebbe International Airport, has been lost to development projects, as Uganda's population grows. All around it new big houses with freshly tiled roofs are springing up. What's left of it is gazetted for scientific research. Several kilometres up the main road is the Uganda Virus Research Institute. It's a massive campus on a hill overlooking Lake Victoria. Security is tight here because samples of dangerous organisms like Ebola, Yellow Fever and Zika are stored there. This is also the only place in Uganda where you can test for Zika. ![Zika spread](https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/ace/standard/625/cpsprodpb/18572/production/_87989699_zika_virus_spread_624.png) - [The mosquito menace explained](https://www.bbc.com/news/health-35427491) But as Dr John Kayuma, one of the laboratory managers told me, one of the reasons why there are few recorded cases in Uganda could be because not many people have been tested for it. "It is possible that there could be several people, or so many people out there with the Zika virus infection, but because many people do not seek treatment in the hospitals, we could be missing out. "And also the surveillance has probably not picked them out. There's a possibility that there are more cases out there." In a few months the government will be starting a study to find out how widespread the Zika virus and other flaviviruses like Yellow Fever, Dengue and West Nile are amongst the population. In the meantime, Dr Lutwama and his team say they are keeping an eye on the type of mosquitoes in the country in case any of the ones that are good at spreading the disease enter Uganda. ## Top stories - [Live. Blasts heard over Jerusalem as new strikes launched on Tehran](https://www.bbc.com/news/live/c24d410m3g4t) - [Are US and Israel aligned on Iran war? 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Readable Markdown	Media caption, Inside the Zika forest The Zika virus, which has been linked to thousands of babies being born with underdeveloped brains in Brazil, was discovered in a forest in the East African state of Uganda seven decades ago. BBC Africa's Catherine Byaruhanga visited the forest. The Zika forest is not well known in Uganda, and most people will be hard-pushed to tell you where it is. The word itself means overgrown in the local Luganda language. There is dense vegetation, a wide range of trees and lots of small animals. The only people you are likely to meet here are the forest-keeper and his family. They live in a small house made of corrugated iron sheets. The virus was discovered in the forest - then a hub of scientific research in East Africa - in 1947 by accident by Ugandan, American and European scientists working on another viral disease, Yellow Fever. While testing monkeys in the forest the scientists, whose research had been funded for a decade by the Rockefeller Foundation, came across a new microorganism, which they named Zika. ![Grey line](https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/ace/standard/464/cpsprodpb/157D/production/_87910550_464x2.jpg) What is the Zika virus: ![Female Aedes aegypti mosquito in the process of acquiring a blood meal from a human host.](https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/ace/standard/976/cpsprodpb/2A2E/production/_87989701_hi031012828.jpg)Image source, US CDC - Spread by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which also carries Dengue Fever and Yellow Fever - First discovered in Uganda in 1947 but now spreading in Latin America - Scientists say there is growing evidence of a link to microcephaly, that leads to babies being born with small heads - Can lead to fever and a rash but most people show no symptoms, and there is no known cure - Only way to fight Zika is to clear stagnant water where mosquitoes breed, and protect against mosquito bites ![Grey line](https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/ace/standard/464/cpsprodpb/157D/production/_87910550_464x2.jpg) Only two cases of the virus have been confirmed in Uganda in the past seven decades. This is because the types of mosquitoes that would transmit the virus to humans don't often come into contact with the general population, says Dr Julius Lutwama, a leading virologist at the Uganda Virus Research Institute. "The Aedes we have, Aedes aegypti formosus, normally does not bite humans. And then we have other \[mosquitoes\] which live in the forests and prefer to bite at dusk and dawn," Dr Lutwama adds. This is in contrast to Latin America, where a different sub species, Aedes aegypti aegypti, is spreading the Zika virus. ![Zika forest](https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/ace/standard/976/cpsprodpb/128E8/production/_87980067_20160128074342-3-3.jpg) Image caption, Not many Ugandans know where the Zika forest is ![A baby born with Zika virus in Brazil](https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/ace/standard/976/cpsprodpb/784E/production/_87989703_hi031176189.jpg)Image source, AFP Image caption, The virus is suspected of leading to babies being born with small heads Much of the Zika forest, which is along the highway between the capital Kampala and Entebbe International Airport, has been lost to development projects, as Uganda's population grows. All around it new big houses with freshly tiled roofs are springing up. What's left of it is gazetted for scientific research. Several kilometres up the main road is the Uganda Virus Research Institute. It's a massive campus on a hill overlooking Lake Victoria. Security is tight here because samples of dangerous organisms like Ebola, Yellow Fever and Zika are stored there. This is also the only place in Uganda where you can test for Zika. ![Zika spread](https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/ace/standard/625/cpsprodpb/18572/production/_87989699_zika_virus_spread_624.png) But as Dr John Kayuma, one of the laboratory managers told me, one of the reasons why there are few recorded cases in Uganda could be because not many people have been tested for it. "It is possible that there could be several people, or so many people out there with the Zika virus infection, but because many people do not seek treatment in the hospitals, we could be missing out. "And also the surveillance has probably not picked them out. There's a possibility that there are more cases out there." In a few months the government will be starting a study to find out how widespread the Zika virus and other flaviviruses like Yellow Fever, Dengue and West Nile are amongst the population. In the meantime, Dr Lutwama and his team say they are keeping an eye on the type of mosquitoes in the country in case any of the ones that are good at spreading the disease enter Uganda.
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