The Los Alamos campground in the Angeles National Forest in California has been closed, due to the discovery of a squirrel that tested positive for plague.  

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, plague is a disease caused by a bacterium (y.pestis) found in rodents; the disease can be transmitted to humans through flea bites.  Throughout the world, 1,000-3,000 cases of plague are diagnosed each year, with 5-15 of those cases occurring in the western United States.  Those occurring in the United States are typically in rural areas that are widely spread apart.

Although caused by the same bacterium, plague can occur in two differently transmittable forms:  bubonic and pneumonic plague.  While bubonic plague is the form that is transmitted through the fleas of rodents, pneumonic plague can be transmitted from person to person.  Most cases of plague throughout the world are the bubonic form, which is not transmittable via person to person.

According to park officials, the Los Alamos campground will be closed for ten days.