MSU Extension White-Tailed Deer Management

Influence of Deer Harvest Regulations on Antlerless Harvest, Abundance, and Sex and Age Composition: Implications for Managing Deer in the Face of Chronic Wasting Disease

Principal Investigators: Beyer, S.B. and D. Etter 

Deer behave differently among sex and age classes, and as a result, CWD prevalence rates differ among sex and age classes. States often alter deer harvest regulations to change the sex and age composition of harvests with the expectation that this will result in population-level changes in deer abundance and composition. Overall, natural resource agencies have limited information on how, and to what degree, deer harvest regulations affect the true population. This limitation is relevant because CWD transmission rates are related to the deer’s sex and age, thus different harvest regulations could have different implications for CWD transmission. The APR Study is attempting to fill these knowledge gaps. 

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Composting Deactivation of CWD Prions

Principal Investigators: Michitsch, R., M.E. Benbow, and K. Herrman 

CWD is persistent in soil, meaning that CWD prions can survive in the environment outside of the cervid’s body. Finding efficient and economical ways of destroying or isolating prions is a priority. There’s a pressing need to mitigate the risk of disease spread through carcass disposal and carcass transportation. Identifying decontamination strategies that can be used on the landscape is increasingly important because CWD contaminated environments may continue to propagate disease.  

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A standardized, high-throughput genetic resource to inform white-tailed deer population and disease management

Principal Investigators: Ott-Conn, C., J. Blanchong, W. Larsen, R. DeYoung and D. Walsh

Using genetic techniques, specifically the use of specific genetic markers termed SNPs (pronounced ‘snips’ – specific locations within an animal’s genome that can vary between individuals), researchers can compare the genetics of individual deer to the genetic characteristics of groups of deer to identify where an animal originated. Researchers can then compare the genetics of CWD positive animals the genetics of other groups of deer to infer where the infected animal originated.     

A team led by Caitlin Ott-Conn, a Laboratory Scientist with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, was awarded funding through PA207 of 2018 to use recent technological advances to design and to create panels of selected SNPs that many CWD researchers will have access to. The panels will give researchers the ability to efficiently and inexpensively determine the population of origin and to do  landscape level investigations of CWD prion gene variation. These panels, once complete, will provide information for  studies of disease spread at roughly half the cost of current techniques.  

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Employing collaboration and innovation to develop CWD education and outreach

Principal Investigators: Pomeranz, E., H. Madill, J. Burroughs, and D. Doberneck

Wildlife management is always based in science. Oftentimes, there is a disconnect between those who shape wildlife management policy and the public. Data shows that beliefs, not scientific data, shapes people's attitudes and guides behavior; and there is a fundamental lack of trust between those who are conducting scientific research and the public.  Because of this, social scientists Holly Madill, Michigan State University and Dr. Emily Pomeranz, Michigan Department of Natural Resources, and their team are addressing those challenges through a strategic public engagement process called a charrette. 

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Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD): Field Animal-Side Testing and Improving Laboratory Diagnostic Sensitivity

Principal Investigators: Sreevatsan, S., S. Bolin, R. Reams, and K. Straka

Developing an inexpensive, easy to use, and accurate ‘animal side’ test for hunters to use to identify animals who are potentially infected with CWD would be a significant advancement in the fight against CWD. Existing CWD testing is expensive, and time and labor intensive. Recently, another testing method abbreviated ‘RT-QulC’, for Real-Time Quaking-Induced Conversion, has emerged.

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Mechanistic understanding on environmental behavior, bioavailability and persistence in chronic wasting disease prions

Principal Investigators: Zhang, W., H. Li., W. Li, K. Steinke, and J.C. Bartz

No one knows how long prions that have been spread across the landscape remain infectious in soil, though evidence shows it may be years! Understanding how to decontaminate CWD contaminated sites is very important and understanding soil chemistry is a key piece of information needed to develop effective decontamination regimes. 

MSU soil scientist Wei Zhang and colleagues at Michigan State and Creighton University (Wen Li, Hui Li, Kurt Steinke, Jason Bartz, and Qi Yuan) were awarded funding under PA 207 of 2018 to collect this information. This interdisciplinary team is focusing on the role of metal ions (such as manganese and copper) on the environmental behavior, bioavailability, and persistence of prions. These metal ions are key to controlling how fast and how well organic materials in soil are degraded. They have developed specialized electrochemical sensors to measure manganese and copper concentrations. Already, in laboratory experiments, the research has shown that copper is more effective than manganese in breaking down prions. 

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CWD show and tell: gauging hunters’ willingness to adopt management practices

Principal Investigators: Christensen, S., K. Schuler, N. Pinizzotto and D. Ortega

State and federal natural resource agencies, hunter organizations, and academics are interested in more effective and efficient CWD surveillance, management, and control to stop or slow  this disease. MSU faculty member Dr. Sonja Christensen has assembled a consortium of 14 universities, seven state and three federal agencies, one Canadian province. 

One example of new research from this effort has been a collaboration with Michigan State University, Cornell University, United States Geological Service (USGS), and the National Deer Association to assess hunter’s intentions and willingness to adopt CWD management practices after watching an informative video about a management action. This study was able to evaluate changes in hunter behavior in a meaningful way that will help agencies target the CWD mitigation strategies that are most likely to succeed. 

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Group size, bioaccumulation, and baiting: quantifying factors affecting disease transmission among deer

Principal Investigators: Williams, D. A., D. Etter, and S. Christensen

While the pathways for CWD transmission have been well characterized in previous studies, the factors that affect transmission and how those factors may interact are not fully understood. This lack of knowledge leaves a gap in epidemiological models that are used for making effective management decisions to combat CWD. Samantha Courtney, Dr. David Williams, and Dr. Sonja Christensen, Michigan State University and Dr. Dwayne Etter, Michigan Department of Natural Resources, and their team are addressing those questions through a study titled: Group size, bioaccumulation, and baiting: quantifying factors affecting disease transmission among deer. 

Funding from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Michigan State University Joint Wildlife Disease Initiative of was awarded to this team to identify the direct and indirect factors that affect CWD transmission among deer.  

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