Infectious Diseases (CWD & EHD) Hammering Deer Populations In Multiple Midwestern States
When landowner and hunter James Barkhurst went scouting his property about a month ago to assess the local deer population ahead of the fall hunting season, he was left in shock. “I’ve seen about 14 dead in less than a mile stretch. There’s a lot of does, big bucks and even fawns. You smell the dead everywhere,” he says. “And I haven’t really went deep into the woods.”
The longtime deer hunter owns several hundred acres and runs a small Airbnb business in Athens county, Ohio, where he has lived with his wife for almost two decades. This time of year, hunters from North Carolina, Virginia, New Jersey and elsewhere usually descend on his accommodation and property to hunt. This year, with so many dead deer in the area, his business has been almost wiped out.
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Chronic wasting disease (CWD) and epizootic hemorrhagic disease (EHD) are killing wild deer in greater numbers in dozens of rural counties across the midwest that depend on the industry. The number of sick and dead deer reported by the public to Ohio’s department of natural resources grew from 2,093 in 2024 to 8,759 this year. That animals are being found dead in or near creeks and rivers may also present a health risk to communities dependent on local waterways for drinking and other uses. CWD is spread from animal to animal through body fluids such as saliva, urine and blood. With drought becoming more prevalent in the region in recent years, larger numbers of deer find themselves gathering at fewer watering spots to drink, fueling the spread of the disease in the early fall.
In the case of EHD, warmer spring and fall temperatures allow for the spread of its carrier, culicoides variipennis, a biting midge that is typically killed off by freezing temperatures. The midge is attracted to mud and water sources, where it lays its eggs. “While it’s been around for a long time, the frequency and intensity of EDH is increasing, and studies are showing that’s happening especially in the upper midwest,” says Sonja Christensen, associate professor at the department of fisheries and wildlife at Michigan State University. “It comes and goes, which makes it a challenge to chase it down. We can’t predict it very well. We do know that in the upper midwest we are seeing more of these large-scale mortality events happening.”
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https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/oct/21/deer-diseases-rural-economies