CWD - New Mexico
MuleyMadness
6/30/05 9:50am
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, JUNE 24, 2005:
TWO MULE DEER TEST POSITIVE FOR CHRONIC WASTING DISEASE
SANTA FE - Two mule deer captured in the Organ Mountains as part of an
ongoing research project near White Sands Missile Range have tested positive
for chronic wasting disease (CWD), a fatal neurological disease that attacks
the brains of infected deer and elk, the Department of Game and Fish
announced.
The number of confirmed CWD cases in New Mexico now stands at 11 since 2002,
when the disease was first confirmed in a deer found near the eastern
foothills of the Organ Mountains. All 11 CWD-infected deer were found in the
same general area of southern New Mexico. The origin of the disease in New
Mexico remains unknown.
The carcasses of the infected deer will be incinerated, said Kerry Mower,
the Department's lead wildlife disease biologist.
Chronic wasting disease causes animals to become emaciated, display abnormal
behavior, lose bodily functions and die. The disease has been found in wild
deer and elk, and in captive deer and elk, in eight states and two Canadian
provinces. There currently is no evidence of CWD being transmitted to humans
or livestock.
Mower said the most recent CWD-positive deer showed no obvious physical
signs of having the disease. They were captured in April 2005 and tested as
part of a 3-year-old research project studying deer population dynamics in
southern New Mexico. More than 140 deer have been captured alive and tested
for the study, in which researchers hope to find the cause of a 10-year
decline in the area deer population. Study participants include the
Department of Game and Fish, the U.S. Army at White Sands Missile Range and
Fort Bliss, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Geological Survey at New Mexico
State University, and San Andres National Wildlife Refuge.
Hunters can assist the Department in its CWD research and prevention efforts
by bringing their fresh, legally harvested deer or elk head to an area
office, where officers will remove the brain stem for testing. Participants
will be eligible for drawings for an oryx hunt on White Sands Missile Range
and a trophy elk hunt on the Valle Vidal. For more information about the
drawing and chronic wasting disease, visit the Department web site at
http://www.wildlife.state.nm.us
TWO MULE DEER TEST POSITIVE FOR CHRONIC WASTING DISEASE
SANTA FE - Two mule deer captured in the Organ Mountains as part of an
ongoing research project near White Sands Missile Range have tested positive
for chronic wasting disease (CWD), a fatal neurological disease that attacks
the brains of infected deer and elk, the Department of Game and Fish
announced.
The number of confirmed CWD cases in New Mexico now stands at 11 since 2002,
when the disease was first confirmed in a deer found near the eastern
foothills of the Organ Mountains. All 11 CWD-infected deer were found in the
same general area of southern New Mexico. The origin of the disease in New
Mexico remains unknown.
The carcasses of the infected deer will be incinerated, said Kerry Mower,
the Department's lead wildlife disease biologist.
Chronic wasting disease causes animals to become emaciated, display abnormal
behavior, lose bodily functions and die. The disease has been found in wild
deer and elk, and in captive deer and elk, in eight states and two Canadian
provinces. There currently is no evidence of CWD being transmitted to humans
or livestock.
Mower said the most recent CWD-positive deer showed no obvious physical
signs of having the disease. They were captured in April 2005 and tested as
part of a 3-year-old research project studying deer population dynamics in
southern New Mexico. More than 140 deer have been captured alive and tested
for the study, in which researchers hope to find the cause of a 10-year
decline in the area deer population. Study participants include the
Department of Game and Fish, the U.S. Army at White Sands Missile Range and
Fort Bliss, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Geological Survey at New Mexico
State University, and San Andres National Wildlife Refuge.
Hunters can assist the Department in its CWD research and prevention efforts
by bringing their fresh, legally harvested deer or elk head to an area
office, where officers will remove the brain stem for testing. Participants
will be eligible for drawings for an oryx hunt on White Sands Missile Range
and a trophy elk hunt on the Valle Vidal. For more information about the
drawing and chronic wasting disease, visit the Department web site at
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