We detected Heartland virus (HRTV) in lone star nymphs collected in 2018 in northern Alabama, USA. Real-time reverse transcription PCR selective for the small segment of the HRTV genome and confirmatory sequencing of positive samples showed high identity with HRTV strains sequenced from Tennessee and Missouri.
Keywords: Alabama; Amblyomma americanum; HRTV; Heartland virus; lone star tick; phleboviruses; southeastern United States; surveillance; tick-borne illness; vector-borne infections; viruses.