Role of baiting and feeding in transmission of CWD

In collaboration with Dr. Tim R. Van Deelen and the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, this project will evaluate the potential role of supplemental feeding in the direct and indirect transmission of disease in white-tailed deer.  In this study, feeding regimes and quantities of feed will be varied at four monitored supplemental feed stations at the Sandhill Wildlife Demonstration Area.  A single monitored natural feeding area on the property will serve as the control. The risks for disease transmission associated with supplemental feeding will be estimated through comparison of contact rates of deer at feeding sites and by fecal contamination at sites.  The experimental study is to be conducted over the course of two winter (November-February) field seasons during 2003-04 and 2004-05 to evaluate annual differences.

Principle Investigator:  Michael D Samuel

Co-investigator: Timothy R. Van Deelen, Department of Wildlife Ecology, UW-Madison
Collaborator: Kurt Vercauteren, CWD Project Coordinator, National Wildlife Research Center, USDA-APHIS

Student: Abbey K. Thompson

Supplemental Feeding Study Photos
Sandhill Wildlife Recreation Area 2003-2005