Cervid Movement Ecology Influences on Chronic Wasting Disease Spread in the Texas Panhandle and Trans-Pecos RegionsStudents: Ashlyn Halseth Ellis (PhD), Austin Ibarra (MS), Calvin Ellis (MS)
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The Texas Panhandle has free-ranging mule deer, white-tailed deer, and elk. Positive CWD cases have been detected in all 3 species. Additionally, CWD has been detected in free-ranging mule deer in the Trans-Pecos. We are developing recommendations for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department to help combat this disease that can be detrimental to our native ungulate populations. We are evaluating how juvenile dispersal may contribute to disease spread. We are GPS-collaring all 3 cervid species in the Panhandle and mule deer in the Trans-Pecos and developing spatial epidemiological models using these data to better predict future CWD spread and where intensive samples might be focused. We are also leveraging previous deer research in the region, along with data from this study, to better understand competitive dynamics between the 3 cervid species coexisting in the Texas Panhandle.
