A disease that kills quickly

A recent virus outbreak in southern Illinois may reduce the number of healthy deer to hunt this season.

An outbreak of the epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus has spread in deer in southern and central Illinois this year. While this disease has very detrimental effects on deer, humans can not get the virus.

Eric Schauber, assistant professor of zoology t SIUC, said he has never heard any instance of this virus causing deer to become violent. In fact, when deer obtain the virus, they become lethargic, disoriented and unresponsive.

"I have heard some people who have seen some deer just wandering around a neighborhood looking dazed with people gathered around where normally they would run off, and the deer stands there looking dazed," Schauber said.

Jeff Squibb, spokesperson for the Illinois Department of Agriculture, said the disease is transmitted through gnats. A gnat feeds on an infected deer and spreads the virus to other deer. In the most severe cases, a deer could die as soon as eight hours after the onset of symptoms.

Squibb said when deer are infected with the virus, they often experience internal bleeding and tend to run off by themselves, making them hard to find. For this reason, the disease is hard to detect. He also said the disease tends to be most severe during times of drought.

While the disease doesn't pose any real threat to humans, the Department of Natural Resources doesn't recommend killing or consuming a diseased animal, Squibb said.

Schauber said given the large number of deer in the area and also the heavy rates of reproduction here in southern Illinois, even if the outbreak spreads rapidly, the overall population shouldn't suffer too much and should recover quickly.

"It's not a doomsday scenario by any sense, " Schuaber said.

Eugene Clark can be reached at 536-3311 ext. 263 or eclark@siude.com.