December 23, 2020 – For the last 18 years, Illinois has been working against the spread of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) in the state’s deer population.
CWD has the ability to spread extensively, eventually killing off herds. Meat from infected deer is not safe to eat. Like Mad Cow Disease, CWD belongs to a family of diseases called prion diseases.
“There has never been any proven transmission of CWD from deer to people, but that is not saying that the risk is zero,” said Dan Skinner, forest wildlife program manager for the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. “Just because it has not been proven, it doesn’t mean that the potential is not out there.”
CWD infected deer are found primarily in northeastern and northern Illinois, particularly along the Winnebago/Boone county line, and in McHenry, and DeKalb counties. In spite of Illinois’ aggressive disease management practices that serve as models for wildlife managers in other states, CWD continues to spread in Illinois. Infected deer have been found as far south as Livingston County.
Skinner says a deer infected with CWD looks exactly like a healthy deer until a few weeks before its death. A deer can be infected for years, actively spreading prions and infecting other deer and you can never tell by looking at it. Wildlife biologists track the spread of CWD by analyzing tissue samples that they collect from deer that hunters bring to mandatory state check stations staffed by IDNR biologists. This year COVID-19 has caused Illinois to close its 15 check stations because the stations attract crowds that could spread COVID.
Without the check stations, Skinner says biologists expect a big decrease in the number of tissue samples that they will collect this year. “That is unfortunate because it means the loss of a lot of good data,” Skinner says.
If a deer tests positive, IDNR calls the hunter to confirm exactly where the deer was killed. That hunter then gets a free hunting permit for next year, valid for the same county. Skinner encourages successful firearm hunters to go online to report their kills at https://www.il.wildlifelicense.com. Hunters can also call the toll-free telephone check-in system at 866-452-4325.
