Michigan Department of Natural Resources confirms state's worst deer disease outbreak since 2012

DETROIT – The Michigan Department of Natural Resources has confirmed the state's worst deer disease outbreak since 2012 with cases found in 11 southwest counties, officials said.

The DNR Wildlife Health Section confirmed epizootic hemorrhagic disease, or EHD, in wild deer populations in Barry, Berrien, Branch, Calhoun, Cass, Hillsdale, Kalamazoo, Kent, Ottawa, St. Joseph and Van Buren counties, according to a department press release.

EHD is transmitted to white-tailed deer through infected midge bites. Deer cannot transmit the disease, which is sometimes fatal for them, directly to one another.

There is no evidence that humans can contract the virus from midges, infected deer or venison, and the disease poses no threat to human health, state officials said.

“The outbreak this year is the worst we’ve seen since 2012, but we expect a similar recovery to local deer numbers like we saw after the 2012 event,” Chad Fedewa, acting deer specialist for the DNR Wildlife Division, said in the release. “So, while hunting and deer sightings will be affected in the short term, there are no long-term concerns with the overall deer population.”

EHD outbreaks typically occur in the late summer to early fall, but the first frost usually kills the midge population, according to the release.

Deer infected with EHD show symptoms like loss of appetite, reduced fear of humans, weakness, excessive salivation, rapid pulse, increased respiration and fever. Infected deer may also seek water to cool their body temperatures.

DNR officials do not expect EHD to have large-scale impacts on the state's deer population, but the disease could affect local areas if the mortality is severe, Fedewa said in the release.

“After an outbreak, local deer populations usually rebound after a few years," he said. "That has been the case over the last decade or so each time we have seen this virus show up.”

Local herds showed signs of rebounding after a few years and fully recovered after four to five years after the 2012 outbreak, according to the release.

Officials ask that anyone suspecting a deer has died or contracted EHD submit their observation to the DNR online. Nearly 2,000 deer had been reported through DNR's online form as of Wednesday.

DNR encourages reporting suspected cases even though it's not necessary to continue testing once the virus has been confirmed in a county.

EHD's effects are not usually countywide, state officials reported. The disease usually affects deer near water sources with exposed mud, where midge flies lay their eggs.

Property owners must properly dispose of deer carcasses if they wish to remove them by leaving them to decompose, burying them at a sufficient depth or disposing them in approved landfills, according to the release.