Comprehensive information on West Nile virus, plague, malaria, Lyme disease and other vectorborne diseases in California is now just a click away on a newly launched Web site based at the University of California, Davis.

Vectorborne diseases are diseases that can be transmitted to humans by mosquitoes, ticks, fleas, lice and rodents.

The new CalSurv site, short for California Vectorborne Disease Surveillance System, is located at http://www.calsurv.org/.

"CalSurv offers one-stop shopping for vectorborne disease surveillance information in the state," says Bruce Eldridge, a UC Davis emeritus professor of entomology who directs the technical development and maintenance arm of the project. "The site is geared toward providing an efficient, rapid and cost-effective means of reporting and analyzing disease-surveillance data," he said.

Eldridge, whose medical entomology career spans 52 years, also serves as "Dr. Vector," responding to e-mail questions regarding vectorborne diseases.

Web users can search the site by disease, the transmitting species or vector, and the bacteria or viruses that cause disease. The CalSurv site also includes the most recent 28 days of positive West Nile virus cases, links to weather and climate Web sites, and information dating back to 1945 about malaria outbreaks in the state.

The Web site, funded by federal grants, is a cooperative effort of UC Davis and its Center for Vectorborne Diseases; the California Department of Public Health; and the Mosquito and Vector Control Association of California, which represents 61 mosquito and vector control districts.