Hemorrhagic disease outbreaks occasionally occur in the Clearwater Region and have also happened in the Panhandle Region, typically during hot, dry summers like what we’re currently experiencing.
Because of that, Fish and Game is asking anyone who sees a sick or dead deer to contact the Panhandle Regional office at (208) 769-1414 or report sick or dead deer on our Wildlife Health reporting page.
The disease is spread by the bites of a small gnat, commonly known as “no-see-ums”, which reproduce in warm, stagnant pools of water. This summer’s hot, dry conditions proved to be ideal for the gnats to experience a population boom, creating the perfect storm of an abundance of gnats at water sources where deer congregated to stay hydrated.
Fish and Game biologists in the Clearwater Region have been closely monitoring large numbers of white-tailed deer deaths from hemorrhagic disease near Kamiah since early-August. You can learn more about that situation in the Aug. 24 update, which contains helpful FAQs on hemorrhagic disease.
The Panhandle Region has not received many reports of dead or sick deer to-date, but biologists will be carefully watching the area until the first frost, which typically kills off the gnats that carry hemorrhagic disease.
For more information on epizootic hemorrhagic disease, click here.
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