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Research suggests chronic wasting disease not a factor in deer s decline
Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;font-style:italic
DP Opinion, eLetters
font-style:normal;10px;' ', ;(128,128,128)POSTED: 07/19/2014 05:08:36 PM MDT
ADD A COMMENT| UPDATED: A DAY AGO
(136,136,136)
' ', A mule deer pauses under a tree in the arsenal. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will host a public meeting regarding the environmental assessment for the Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge land exchange and expansion. Steve Berendzen, Refuge Manager for the Rocky Mountain Arsenal, discusses the area and its importance for the wildlife using the land. Kathryn Scott Osler, The Denver Post (Kathryn Scott Osler)
15px;Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif;(51,51,51)
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A mule deer pauses under a tree in the Rocky Mountain arsenal. (Kathryn Scott Osler, Denver Post file)
Re: Deer declining across Colorado and West, July 14 news story.
While it is unfortunate to read that wild deer populations are currently declining in Colorado, it is inaccurate to point to chronic wasting disease (CWD) as a significant factor in the drop.
In 2010, researchers at Colorado State University estimated CWD effects on mule deer population between 2006 and 2008. They concluded that CWD s effects seem to be sufficiently small that they can be omitted in estimating the influences of CWD on population growth rate.
Further, testimony offered by the Colorado Division of the Wildlife Research Center stated that at a population level it s been difficult to demonstrate any effect.
CWD is often used as a political and PR weapon against private deer farms, but it s important to understand that the disease is rare, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture data, and that there are many other factors behind the decline in deer populations, such as weather and predation.
James C. Kroll,
Nacogdoches, Texas
The writer is a professor at Stephen F. Austin State University s College of Forestry and Agriculture.
This letter was published in the July 20 edition.
For information on how to send a letter to the editor, . Follow on Twitter to receive updates about new letters to the editor when they re posted.