Wildlife officials are monitoring two deadly diseases affecting Ohio’s deer.
One poses a short-term threat while the other could affect deer populations for years to come, said Clint McCoy, deer program administrator at the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.
Hemorrhagic disease, the shorter-term threat, is caused by a virus spread by a tiny midge. Last year, it devasted deer populations in parts of southern Ohio.
Citizens are encouraged to report dead or sick deer to help track the spread of the disease.
This year, hemorrhagic disease also hit parts of northern Ohio, including Lorain and Portage counties, but its long-term impact is blunted because deer can acquire immunity, McCoy said.
"Once the deer is exposed to the virus and survives, it has built up antibodies to offer protection from future infection," he said.
He said climate change contributes to the spread of hemorrhagic disease as warmer weather favors midge populations.
Meanwhile, Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) — the second illness — is a growing concern.
“I don’t think there’s anywhere in the country where CWD has been detected and it hasn’t spread,” he said.
At the start of gun season later this month, hunters will be required to submit all deer taken in four Western Ohio counties and parts of five others for CWD testing.
“We define the disease surveillance as being all of Allen, Harden, Marion and Wyandot Counties and portions of Crawford, Morrow, Delaware, Union and Hancock,” McCoy said.
Chronic Wasting Disease is caused by an aberrant protein fragment called a prion that lodges in the deer's brain. It spreads when deer come into contact with other infected animals or through contaminated soil, water or plants.
CWD is fatal, but it can take up to 18 months to claim its victim, which in the meantime can spread the prion through the surrounding herd.
McCoy said prions can remain in soil for years, which makes the disease impossible to irradicate once it's established.
Hunters are encouraged not to eat infected deer, although it's unknown whether the prion can infect humans.
Around 220,000 deer are harvested each year in Ohio.
