Venezuelan equine encephalomyelitis (VEE) epizoodemics were reported at 6-10-year intervals in northern South America beginning in the 1920s. In 1937, epizootic VEE virus was isolated from infected horse brain and shown as distinct from the North American equine encephalomyelitis viruses. Subsequently, epizootic and sylvatic strains were isolated in distinct ecosystems; isolates were characteri...