Researchers Say Deer Culls Have Minimal Effect on Hunting
Daniel Xu | October 25, 2013

The culling of deer herds or other wildlife has long been an accepted form of population control, and can help reduce the spread of illnesses like chronic wasting disease (CWD). A recent study by researchers at the University of Illinois stated that in the long term, culls can keep disease in check without negatively affecting the number of deer harvested by hunters. The study, which was published in the journal Preventive Veterinary Medicine, concluded that there was little difference in the number of harvests between areas with population management and areas without.

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources (DNR) tests roughly 7,000 deer annually for CWD, which affects deer, elk, and moose. Since CWD is always fatal when contracted, culls are typically carried out by DNR-employed sharpshooters or other methods so the disease does not spread to healthy herds. Researchers discovered that disease control efforts have been impressively successful, with the prevalence of CWD in tested deer remaining at one percent over the last 10 years. But has it come at a cost to hunters?

“We wanted to know whether Illinois hunters have fewer deer to hunt now than they did before CWD,” said wildlife epidemiologist Nohra Mateus-Pinilla, one of the leaders of study. “We found that hunter harvest has increased, and the prevalence of CWD has been maintained at low levels for 10 years in Illinois.”

Some hunters believe that widespread culls mean less deer come hunting season, but researchers say this is not supported by the data—at least in Illinois.

“Since 2001, hunter harvest of deer has increased similarly in the northern region of Illinois, where CWD occurs, and the rest of the state, where there is no disease or sharpshooting,” said animal science professor Jan Novakofski, another of the study’s authors.

Since killing infected deer prevents the spread of disease, wildlife officials say that culls are beneficial in the long run. University of Illinois Life Sciences Editor Diana Yates reported that in only two Illinois counties did researchers find that deer culling directly affected hunter success. Otherwise, there seems to be no difference between CWD-affected areas and those with healthy deer populations. While this may be encouraging news for hunters, researchers still warn that CWD is a worrying problem and is increasing in many parts of the country.

“CWD is a prion disease (like mad cow disease) and it’s 100 percent fatal. There’s no current way that we can actually make the deer better, so it’s important that we keep it from spreading too far throughout the population,” said co-author Michelle Green.

Copyright © 2013 OutdoorHub

killing infected deer DOES NOT prevent the spread of the disease CWD. If one could , at the same time, kill ALL the infected deer it still wouldn't stop/prevent the spread of CWD. The soil where those infected deer traveled/ate/pissed/pooped is infected and will remain infected and able to spread the disease.

and they know that....

They're talking about geographic spread. If infected deer are taken out of the population, they are unable to travel and carry the disease to new geographic areas.

The article seems one sided.

I wonder what the CWD infection rate is in a state like Colorado or Wyoming? These states have had the disease much longer than Illinois and their game populations seem to be, more-or-less, thriving. My personal opinion is that this disease isn't really as impressive as it is made out to be.

Furthermore Illinois is flat broke, billions in debt, but they find money for sharpshooters or government employees to shoot deer? I wish I could say I was surprised.

quote:

Originally posted by scojac:
They're talking about geographic spread. If infected deer are taken out of the population, they are unable to travel and carry the disease to new geographic areas.

you missed my point. It does no good to remove them because others will take their infected place because of the infected ground and they will spread the disease to new geographic areas.

CWD is not spread to new areas thru natural deer movement, unless one considers a trailer natural movement....

It depends on the scale you're talking about. If you mean the jump CWD made all the way to New York and West Virginia several years ago, you're correct. When CWD appears in a new area that far away from any other infected animals, then you can bet the deer breeders are responsible. This is how it got to Wisconsin, although they will fight you on this idea. The fact is that deer just don't move a thousand miles in less than a year on their own.

On a smaller scale, CWD can also be spread by animals who walk to a new area. Deer are known to move around, especially young ones when they are looking for a new area to call home. Movements of 2 to 20 miles are not uncommon. This is plenty far enough to move the disease into a new county and establish what is referred to as a spark. We've seen it spread this way in Illinois. The targeted sharpshooting program has worked well in keeping the disease from getting established in new areas. The idea is to try to contain it until the researchers come up with a more permanent solution.

As far as spending the money, the funds it takes to run the CWD management program are less than a drop in the Illinois budget bucket. There are also a lot of donated money used in the program. It makes sense to me to spend a couple of million dollars to protect a billion dollar recreation resource.

given the number of deaths each year, the money would be better spent on a EHD vaccine....something to think about.

and it's not all deer BREEDERS moving infected deer. Enclosure owners do it also. First major moves were done by biologists and researchers. Lots of blame to go around.