Okla. Expands Cimarron County Surveillance Area After Chronic Wasting Disease Detected In Deer

In a news release Thursday, the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation confirmed that a dead deer tested positive for chronic wasting disease (CWD) north of Felt, prompting an expansion of the Selective Surveillance Area (SSA) in Cimarron County.

According to the department’s news release, additional land has been added northwest of the original SSA. The department said the newly expanded boundaries now run from the Oklahoma-New Mexico line near Mexhoma eastward to Boise City, then southeast along U.S. 287 to the Oklahoma-Texas line near Kerrick, Texas. The release noted that all land in Cimarron County south and west of these boundaries is included in the SSA.

The department said hunters who harvest deer or elk within the SSA must follow new restrictions on transporting animals outside the area to help limit the spread of the neurological disease. According to the news release, CWD, which is always fatal, creates holes in the brains of deer, elk, moose, and other members of the cervid family. The release also emphasized that pronghorn antelope are not affected, and that natural transmission of CWD from wild animals to humans or livestock has not been documented.

The department stated in the release that CWD has now been detected in free-ranging cervids across 35 states.

According to the department, it has conducted CWD monitoring of hunter-harvested deer and elk, as well as road-killed deer, since 1999 after the disease was first detected in a commercial elk herd in 1998. The release also noted that a second CWD-positive commercial elk herd was discovered in 2019, and that Oklahoma confirmed its first in-state case of CWD in free-ranging deer in June 2023 in Texas County.

According to the news release, there are currently three active SSAs in Oklahoma, all in the northwestern part of the state. The department stated that it has set up voluntary testing sites within each SSA where hunters can leave the heads of harvested deer or elk for CWD testing. The department said that full details on SSA boundaries, voluntary testing, and cervid transport rules within the SSA are available at wildlifedepartment.com/hunting/resources/deer/cwd/ssa.

The department said in the release that it will continue to monitor for signs of CWD following a joint CWD Response Strategy with the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry, and that additional information will be provided on ways hunters can assist with detection and control efforts.

The department stated that additional management guidelines will be provided if deemed necessary to protect Oklahoma’s deer and elk populations.

The department also encouraged hunters to learn more about CWD, hunting regulations, and proper disposal of infected animals by visiting wildlifedepartment.com/hunting/resources/deer/cwd. Additionally, the release noted that hunters should be aware of Oklahoma rules on importing cervid carcasses or carcass parts from outside the state.