Chronic Wasting Disease
Research at
the USGS-Wisconsin Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit
Landscape
factors and deer density affecting CWD transmission: a comparison of
CWD
epizootics in
The broad
objectives of this
research are to identify landscape and biological factors associated
with the
patterns of CWD infection in white-tailed deer across southern
Specific project
objectives
include:
1) Evaluate
existing spatial
deer populations, habitat characteristics, and disease prevalence data
to
identify study sites, determine aerial survey methods required to
estimate deer
density, and compile data on deer harvest and removal for study sites.
2) Assemble
comprehensive
GIS data layers that include land cover/land use, topography, soil
types, deer
habitat, and features such as waterways, highways, and railroad
right-of-ways.
3) Develop maps
which relate
the deer density, GIS, and the CWD prevalence data for study sites and
evaluate
spatial-temporal age-prevalence relationships to determine factors
affecting
disease transmission rates, with emphasis on density vs frequency
dependent
transmission and difference between continuous and fragmented deer
habitats.
4) Based on the
results in
Objective 3, develop predictive models to develop and evaluate adaptive
approaches for CWD management or control.
Co-Investigator: Dr. Timothy R. VanDeelen,
Department
of Wildlife Ecology, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Student: Dan Storm