Theres been multiple variants of the virus that causes CO VID-19 have been documented in the United States and globally during this pand emic. The virus that causes CO VID-19 is a type of coronavirus, a large family of viruses. Coronaviruses are named for the crown-like spikes on their surfaces.When a virus replicates or makes copies of itself, it sometimes changes a little bit, which is normal for a virus. These changes are called “mutations”.