Two percent of deer killed and tested during the regular fall hunting season, as well as in a special hunt that ended Feb. 15, were infected with Chronic Wasting Disease. Ten deer had CWD, out of about 400 deer tested in the region south of Bridger, according to a release from Montana FWP.
Hunters killed 327 deer during the special hunt and all were tested. The 400 number includes deer killed during the regular hunt season, when hunters voluntarily submitted samples for CWD testing. Those voluntary tests showed two deer were positive for CWD. FWP then authorized the special winter hunt in which all deer were tested.
A 5 percent infection rate is the level at which biologists implement additional measures in an attempt to control a CWD outbreak. While the overall infection rate was below that level, in Hunt District 510 along the Clarks Fork of the Yellowstone River between Belfry and Bridger, the infection rate was closer to 10 percent.
CWD is fatal to deer, elk and moose, but there are no documented cases of the disease being transmitted to animals or humans outside the deer family. Still, the Centers for Disease Control recommends testing for all deer killed in areas where the disease is known to exist, and that the meat from animals that test positive not be consumed.
Malformed proteins called prions cause CWD. The infection is similar to so-called Mad Cow Disease that can be transmitted to humans when they eat infected beef. The disease has killed more than 200 people, primarily in Great Britain, since an outbreak in 1996.
For more information about CWD in Montana, check Hook and Bullet's rundown of the issue here. The story provides links to past articles chronicling Montana's efforts to compact the fatal wildlife disease. Included is a map that shows the extent of the disease in North America.