Figure 1

Scrapie in Iceland. Subdivision of the country in seven areas according to their appreciated scrapie status and the inclusive counties indicated. Scrapie was, from its presumed origin in Skagafjörður around 1880, confined to a part of northern Iceland until ca. 1950 (orange). It has since spread patchily to greater or lesser parts of all counties (blue) except for four and a major naturally demarcated part of the fifth (green). Three of these counties are found in Area I and the fourth is Area IV. The farms where scrapie has been diagnosed from the year 2000 (incl.) are located in Area II (16 farms), Area VI (11 farms) and in Area III (2 farms). Scrapie has not been diagnosed in Areas I and VII for 20-25 years and not after about 1990 in Area V. The scrapie-free counties and the large green area in the north-east corner of the country are the main areas in the country used to provide healthy lambs to restock formerly scrapie-afflicted farms.