On Jan. 30 and 31 the Utah Division of Wildlife

Resources (UDWR) captured 35 deer (27 bucks and eight does) in the La

Sal Mountains near Moab to further its research of chronic wasting

disease (CWD) in southeastern Utah.  

    Lead researcher Leslie McFarlane, DWR wildlife

disease specialist, contracted with Pathfinder Helicopters to help

capture the deer, which were then radio-collared and released. The

collared deer were selected from representative areas on the north,

east and south ends of the La Sal Mountains in an attempt to get a

balanced picture of the species’ movements.   

         Radio-collars were fitted

with transmitters, allowing McFarlane to locate animals regularly by

aircraft or satellite. The GPS points that are taken will be used to

examine deer movements in relation to known areas where chronic wasting

disease has been found on the LaSals.

    The capture of 35 deer initiates the second year of

research, designed specifically to  study the movements, migration

and reproductive behavior of mule deer on the La Sal Mountains. This

information could lead to some definitive conclusions about deer

movement in relation to the disease and possible transmission routes.

 

    Since the fall of 2002, almost 10,300 deer in Utah

have been tested for chronic wasting disease. Of those, 26 have tested

positive for the disease and eighteen of those positive animals come

from the La Sal Mountains where it is estimated that 2 percent of the

buck population has been affected. Chronic wasting disease is a

neurological disorder that is always fatal to deer and elk that

contract the disease. Currently, there is no evidence to suggest that

humans are susceptible.