"Be vigilant" is the blunt message from Defra and the Animal and Plant Health Agency after a ewe in Staffordshire tested positive for bluetongue serotype 3 on 10 July 2026. Officials said the animal showed head swelling, drooling, crusty nostrils and lameness in all four feet, and they called it England’s first confirmed infection of the summer. (gov.uk) For farmers in the North, that will land as more than a Midlands story. Defra’s latest position says England has had one BTV-3 case since the new season began on 1 July 2026, while Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have recorded none in that same period. (gov.uk)

The warning signs have not all looked the same. Defra’s update lists a calf in Lancashire, confirmed on 23 June 2026, that was born blind and also showed neurological signs, and a Staffordshire calf confirmed on 9 June 2026 that was born blind but was otherwise clinically well. (gov.uk) That matters because bluetongue does not always announce itself as a dramatic outbreak moving yard to yard. Sometimes the first clue on a holding is a difficult calving, blindness, swelling or odd behaviour in youngstock, which is why officials are again telling keepers to report suspected signs quickly. (gov.uk)

Defra and APHA say the midge season restarted on 31 March 2026, and the recent warm spell means temperatures are now high enough for the virus to develop inside the insects and pass on to more animals. The same government update says infection can also spread through germinal products such as semen, ova and embryos. (gov.uk) There is also a wider weather piece behind the concern. Officials say temperatures in nearby continental Europe are now high enough for infected midges there to become infectious, raising the chance of further virus pressure reaching Britain, even though the current overall risk of incursion remains rated medium and the airborne route is still classed as negligible. (gov.uk)

On paper, the rules are easier than they were earlier in the outbreak. Defra says the whole of England is now a bluetongue restricted zone, but animals can move within England without a specific bluetongue licence or pre-movement test. The catch is around germinal products, where a specific licence and testing still apply and the keeper carries the sampling, postage and testing costs. (gov.uk) Wales is under an all-Wales restricted zone, introduced at 00:01 on 10 November 2025. According to GOV.WALES and Defra, that means livestock can move between England and Wales without bluetongue vaccination or other mitigation measures, although donor animals still have to be tested before germinal products are frozen or marketed. (gov.uk)

For northern marts, store producers and breeders with customers over the border, Scotland is where the paperwork bites harder. Defra says any movement of bluetongue-susceptible animals from a restricted zone to Scotland, including temporary moves to shows, markets and gatherings, must meet the EXD608(EW) licence conditions from 1 June 2026 until at least 9 September 2026. (gov.uk) The Scottish Government adds that sheep, goats, camelids and other ruminants moving to live in Scotland, or heading to a show or market there, require a PCR or pre-movement test within seven days of the move during that period. In practice, that means extra planning for border farms and hauliers at the busiest point of the summer trading calendar. (gov.scot)

The scale of the recent outbreak helps explain why officials are taking no chances. Defra says Great Britain recorded 348 bluetongue cases in the 2025 to 2026 season: 324 in England, 24 in Wales and none in Scotland, with a further five confirmed BTV-3 cases in Northern Ireland reported separately by DAERA. (gov.uk) Before this month’s case, the government says England had 163 confirmed cases in 2024 to 2025, including one BTV-12 case, while the 2023 to 2024 season brought the first UK BTV-3 incursions in more than 15 years. The message now is plain enough: check stock closely, use the vaccination and biosecurity guidance, and speak to APHA promptly if there is any doubt about symptoms or movement rules. (gov.uk)