LIBERAL ? Agriculture officials say a Kansas State University scientist discovered a new wheat virus during this year’s growing season, but the impact of the virus is still mostly unknown.

The virus was named triticum mosaic by Dallas Seifers, an agricultural research scientist at Kansas State. It was found in several places around the state last spring, including university fields and privately owned land.

Seifers said his tests indicated the virus did not have a significant impact on this year’s wheat harvest.

Mike Hanson, of the Seward County Kansas State Research and Extension office in Liberal, said research is currently being done to determine how the virus spreads and its full effects.

“They don’t know the percentage it’s affecting in the fields,” he said. “It may be fairly minor as an economic loss if it only affects 5 to 10 percent tops, but if it affects more than that, it could become very serious.”

Initial research indicates the virus is located primarily in western Kansas, Hanson said. He said rare instances of the virus were found in Dodge City and Garden City.

It also is not known how rapidly the virus will spread, Hanson said.

“That has yet to be seen,” he said. “Being so new, they don’t know how it’s going to spread, how quick it will spread and what it does to a plant.”

Seifers said he and others are researching to see how the virus spreads, its impact and what weather it favors.