Post by Woody Williams on Mar 24, 2011 16:39:40 GMT -5
Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) Surveillance Update: March 23, 2011 H3
All heads of deer and elk received to date from the fall hunting seasons have been tested, although a few heads continue to dribble into the lab. Herein we provide the summary of the 2010 fall surveillance. However, the ongoing CWD Surveillance Program will continue to test heads whenever they are received throughout the year.
From September 1, 2010 to March 23, 2011 we tested 5062 heads (primarily deer heads) and detected nineteen (0.4%) new cases of CWD in wild deer in Alberta.
Seventeen of the positive deer were mule deer: twelve males, five females
The two remaining positive deer were white-tail males
All positive deer were harvested by hunters and were in very good to excellent body condition.
All but one positive deer were adults. The remaining positive deer was a yearling in the early stages of infection.
Many of the infected deer were near previous known CWD cases, largely in the Battle River and Ribstone Creek drainages in the north and the Red Deer River drainage in the south.
A cluster of infected deer was found north and west of Dinosaur Provincial Park in WMU 152 – a significant extension of the disease westward along the Red Deer River.
Of particular significance, the positive yearling mule deer buck was the first case of CWD found in the North Saskatchewan River valley in Alberta. This is strong evidence of recent expansion of the disease into or within the valley.
As anticipated, additional infected deer were found in CFB Wainwright in association with the Battle River valley.
The 19 new hunter-kill cases are in addition to the road-kill case found in February 2010, thus the annual total for 2010 is 20 cases.
Ongoing NEGATIVE test results were posted to AlbertaRelm and made available to individual hunters. To date, approximately 50% of the test results have been read by the hunter.
Ongoing POSITIVE test results were provided by phone directly to the hunter who harvested the infected deer.
As in previous years, hunters who harvest a CWD-infected deer were given the options of
- keeping the meat
- turning in the meat and receiving a replacement licence for this year (if the season was still open where the infected deer was harvested)
- turning in the meat and receiving a replacement licence for next year for the same species and location as the infected deer
The total number of CWD cases detected in wild deer in Alberta since September 2005 is 94.
As part of the ongoing provincial surveillance program, we also are testing a random sample of emaciated cervids associated with severe winter conditions occurring in various parts of Alberta
All heads of deer and elk received to date from the fall hunting seasons have been tested, although a few heads continue to dribble into the lab. Herein we provide the summary of the 2010 fall surveillance. However, the ongoing CWD Surveillance Program will continue to test heads whenever they are received throughout the year.
From September 1, 2010 to March 23, 2011 we tested 5062 heads (primarily deer heads) and detected nineteen (0.4%) new cases of CWD in wild deer in Alberta.
Seventeen of the positive deer were mule deer: twelve males, five females
The two remaining positive deer were white-tail males
All positive deer were harvested by hunters and were in very good to excellent body condition.
All but one positive deer were adults. The remaining positive deer was a yearling in the early stages of infection.
Many of the infected deer were near previous known CWD cases, largely in the Battle River and Ribstone Creek drainages in the north and the Red Deer River drainage in the south.
A cluster of infected deer was found north and west of Dinosaur Provincial Park in WMU 152 – a significant extension of the disease westward along the Red Deer River.
Of particular significance, the positive yearling mule deer buck was the first case of CWD found in the North Saskatchewan River valley in Alberta. This is strong evidence of recent expansion of the disease into or within the valley.
As anticipated, additional infected deer were found in CFB Wainwright in association with the Battle River valley.
The 19 new hunter-kill cases are in addition to the road-kill case found in February 2010, thus the annual total for 2010 is 20 cases.
Ongoing NEGATIVE test results were posted to AlbertaRelm and made available to individual hunters. To date, approximately 50% of the test results have been read by the hunter.
Ongoing POSITIVE test results were provided by phone directly to the hunter who harvested the infected deer.
As in previous years, hunters who harvest a CWD-infected deer were given the options of
- keeping the meat
- turning in the meat and receiving a replacement licence for this year (if the season was still open where the infected deer was harvested)
- turning in the meat and receiving a replacement licence for next year for the same species and location as the infected deer
The total number of CWD cases detected in wild deer in Alberta since September 2005 is 94.
As part of the ongoing provincial surveillance program, we also are testing a random sample of emaciated cervids associated with severe winter conditions occurring in various parts of Alberta