CWD detected in new Wyoming elk hunt areas

The Wyoming Game and Fish Department has confirmed the presence of chronic wasting disease in Wyoming’s Elk Hunt Areas 47 and 49.

10/31/2022 3:58:36 PM

Cody - The Wyoming Game and Fish Department has confirmed the presence of chronic wasting disease in Elk Hunt Areas 47 and 49. The disease was detected in two hunter-harvest bull elk Oct. 12 and Oct. 15.

Elk Hunt Areas 47 and 49 are located in the Cody Region and are bordered by areas that previously detected CWD in elk. To the east CWD was verified in Hunt Areas 34 in 2015 and 48 in 2017. In 2018 CWD was detected in Hunt Area 66 to the northwest, and in 2020 it was found in Hunt Area 45 to the north.

To ensure hunters are informed Game and Fish announces when CWD is found in a new hunt area. The Centers for Disease Control recommends hunters do not consume any animal that is obviously ill or tests positive for CWD.

Continued monitoring of CWD over time is important to help Game and Fish understand the potential impacts of the disease, as well as evaluate future management actions for deer and elk. A map of CWD endemic areas is available on the Game and Fish website. The disease is 100% fatal to deer, elk and moose. In 2021 Game and Fish personnel tested 6,947 CWD lymph node samples from deer and elk — primarily submitted by hunters — and continue to evaluate new recommendations for  managing the disease. 

Visit the Game and Fish website for more information on chronic wasting disease testing, transmission and regulations on transportation and disposal of carcasses.

(Nish Goicolea, communications and education chief - (nish.goicolea1@wyo.gov) and Tara Hodges, Cody information and education specialist - (tara.hodges@wyo.gov))

- WGFD -