February 17, 2022 at 2:36 p.m.
CWD found in Vilas County
Meeting highlights need for continued participation in sampling program
CWD found in Vilas County
According to state statutes, when a deer tests positive for the disease the county in which the deer was found is subject to a three-year feeding and baiting ban. Any county within a 10-mile radius of where the deer was harvested or found dead is also placed under a two-year feeding and baiting ban. The ban is meant to decrease unnatural concentrations of deer in the hopes of limiting deer-to-deer contact where CWD has the potential to spread.
In December of 2021, a deer in the wild herd in Vilas County tested positive. While the county was already under a feeding and baiting ban, this new finding effectively reset the clock on the ban, which will now be in place for another three years.
Last week, DNR supervisor Michele Woodford presented information on that finding and the potential next steps related to the CWD positive test in that wild deer. The deer, a 3-year-old doe, came from the Eagle River managed city hunt. It was harvested on Nov. 13 and was reported to have appeared healthy when it was harvested.
The harvest location, Woodford said, was confirmed by DNR staff to ensure there was no false information given out. The Wisconsin Conservation Congress and the County Deer Advisory Council were also informed of the finding. After that, the 10-mile radius was drawn around the finding to determine what would happen with the baiting and feeding bans. Because bans were already in place, Woodford said, the finding would only serve to extend those bans. No new bans would be put in place due to this positive test. The 10-mile radius, she said, covers a home range of a deer.
Woodford said the next step is to determine if there is an adequate sample size to get an idea of how the disease may be moving across the landscape. Additional sampling will go on for at least five years from this positive test, depending on what is found. The more sampling that can be done the better informed deer managers can be about the movement and density of the disease, Woodford explained.
The DNR will work with the Office of Applied Science to determine how many samples will be needed in the next few years. While Woodford did not have an exact figure at the time of her presentation, she felt 150-200 more samples per year might help paint a clearer picture. Finding a positive deer in a urban location makes the situation unique, meaning attaining that number of samples may be more difficult.
Woodford said they are off to good start on determining prevalence of CWD, due to other sampling efforts such as those down near the Crescent Flats where another wild deer tested positive for CWD.
In Vilas County, the three-year pooled data shows 540 samples submitted, as opposed to 1,404 in Oneida County. Lincoln County had 711 samples in that three year period. Forest County, she said, had 112 samples. The numbers there are lower due to lower deer densities in that county. The opportunity remains, though, to get more samples from across the Northwoods. She said she could not thank hunters and landowners enough for voluntarily having their deer tested. Hunter participation is crucial in learning more about the spread and prevalence of CWD. Woodford also asked for help from the public in reporting sick deer as well as getting those deer to the DNR to have them tested.
Nuisance permits and agricultural damage permits are also important in having more deer tested. Managed hunts can now be extended outside of the timeline of the normal hunting season, also leading to more testing opportunities.
Surveillance permits, she said, can be issued to private landowners of five contiguous acres or more. Depending on the size of the property, the landowner would be issued three to five permits to start with. A condition of those permits is mandatory testing.
"It's going to be important in the next year or two, really to work to increase that public recognition and understanding that CWD is a serious disease that can impact our populations," Woodford said. Participation will continue to be important as these sampling efforts continue.
For more information and CWD and CWD sampling, visit the DNR website dnr.wi.gov and enter the search word "CWD."
Beckie Gaskill may be reached via email at [email protected].
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