Nine samples from hunter-harvested deer from near Harpers Ferry during the 2016 hunting seasons tested positive for chronic wasting disease, bringing the total of CWD positive deer from the area to 15.
DNR representatives met with hunters and landowners in Harpers Ferry and Waukon Jan. 18 to discuss collecting additional deer samples from areas where data is limited, and to get more samples from the immediate areas where new positive cases were confirmed.
At each meeting, attendees volunteered to help collect additional samples.
“We hope to collect 250 to 300 samples from mature deer from a specific area around Harpers Ferry and that will do two things – provide information on specific areas in the target zone where we do not have any data and to remove animals from the area where CWD-positive deer have been found,” said Dr. Dale Garner, Wildlife Bureau chief.
“There is no good news when it comes to chronic wasting disease. We know that if we leave it alone, it’s going to spread. By removing adult deer, we are trying to target animals that are most likely to carry the prion, which will slow the spread of the disease while still allowing for quality deer hunting experiences each fall. There is no way to kill the prion, and the disease is always fatal,” Garner said.
The scientific collection effort which began Jan. 21 runs through Feb. 5 in a defined area near Harpers Ferry.
Participants met with DNR wildlife staff to discuss how to remove the deer, where to focus their effort, and how to provide the lymph nodes to the DNR for testing. Once a sample is submitted, it takes two to three weeks to get results.
Participants have a scientific collectors permit, and tags and must contact the DNR within 24 hours of collecting deer to arrange for sample collection. Participants can use shotguns, muzzleloaders, bows and rifles .24 caliber and larger. All other regulations, including the blaze orange requirement and shooting hours restrictions, apply.
There is no fee for the permits which are available at the Allamakee County Conservation office.
A similar effort took place in 2015. Of the goal of 200 samples, 105 deer were collected, providing 85 usable samples. Twenty fawns were not sampled.
The DNR began collecting deer tissue samples in 2002 after the CWD outbreak in Wisconsin. Since then, more than 61,000 samples from wild deer and 4,000 samples from hunting preserve deer have been collected and tested. The first wild deer tested positive in 2013, followed by three in 2014, two in 2015 and nine so far in 2016.
CWD is not just an Iowa issue; Minnesota has seen a spike in deer testing positive for CWD as well. Illinois, Nebraska, Missouri and Wisconsin are all battling this disease.