UI researchers express concern about COVID-19 spread in deer populations

By VIVIAN LA | Assistant Daytime Editor

White-tailed deer in Illinois and other states can be infected with COVID-19, and Illinois researchers have concerns about how humans passed on the virus and what it means for the future of pandemic.

©Wildlife Veterinary Epidemiology Laboratory – Illinois Natural History Survey

In November, hundreds of white-tailed deer in Iowa tested positive for COVID-19, suggesting that humans are spreading the virus to animal populations and among one another.

This came after the U.S. Department of Agriculture released a study in August stating that COVID-19 antibodies were found in deer populations in Illinois, Michigan, New York and Pennsylvania. These antibodies suggested that deer were exposed but potentially not infected.

Read the whole story at The Daily Illini website, here.