Scientists have warned a “zombie deer disease” could spread to humans after hundreds of animals were infected with the illness in the US over the last year.
Chronic wasting disease (CWD), which leaves animals drooling, lethargic, stumbling and with a blank stare, has been found in 800 samples of deer, elk and moose across Wyoming.
Experts describe the disease as a “slow-moving disaster” in a recent report by The Guardian. DrCory Anderson, a CWD researcher at the University of Minnesota, explained that the illness is “invariably fatal, incurable, and highly contagious,” warning it is nearly impossible to eradicate once it infects an environment.
Scientists have also noted that CWD is resistant to disinfectants, formaldehyde, radiation, and incineration at 600C, and can persist in dirt or on surfaces for years.
Last year, the disease was reportedly detected in some 800 samples collected from deer, elk, and moose across the state of Wyoming, according to Breanna Ball of the state’s Game and Fish Department.
She told The Guardian that the infection rate was an increase on previous years.
Scientists are particularly concerned that the disease has apparently made its way to Yellowstone National Park in recent months.
Former chief of animal health for the US Federal Fish & Wildlife service, Dr Thomas Roffe, as quoted in the report, explained that the park’s ecosystem currently supports the greatest and most diverse array of large wild mammals on the continent.
