Hunting & Fishing Northern Plains Whitetail Disease

[ZLBubba]

Yahoo whitetail article

I love hunting whitetails so this story really sucks to read. Anyone know the specifics of epizootic hemorrhagic disease (EHD)?

 

[psinclair]

Re: Northern Plains Whitetail Disease

Otherwise known as "Blue tongue"....I live right on the Milk River in NE Montana and would say 90% loss on the whitetail is low....it was devestating.

 

[bornhunter04]

Re: Northern Plains Whitetail Disease

Yes blue tongue has hit Southern IL 2 times in the last 3 or 4 years it really has devastated the herds. Nature's way of thinning the numbers i guess. It's never good when blue tongue hits.

 

[ZLBubba]

Re: Northern Plains Whitetail Disease

Man guys, I'm sorry to hear that. My buddy and I were planning a South Dakota whitetail hunt this year, but we may reconsider since the tags may get revoked.

How does blue tongue effect muley, pronghorn, and elk populations?

 

[xdeano]

Re: Northern Plains Whitetail Disease

The population of whitetails over here in ND, west river took a hell of a hit. I have heard a lot of rumor from SD that it hit them just as hard west river.

I'd say if you're planning a trip east river, you'll be fine. But west, not so much. Kind of depends on the area.

Doesn't do much to mulies, pronghorn or elk populations.

xdeano

 

[ZLBubba]

Re: Northern Plains Whitetail Disease

Cool, thanks for the info.

 

[Palmershunter]

Re: Northern Plains Whitetail Disease

Hunted along the Cheyenne river this season and in one of my main areas I never saw a whitetail where I usually see dozens. This was the worst year for deer in the thirty years I have been hunting there.

 

[ZLBubba]

Re: Northern Plains Whitetail Disease

Deer are so overpopulated in the mid-Atlantic states right now. Maryland and Virginia are overflowing with deer. I'm surprised blue tongue hasn't hit these populations as much, especially considering the climate is warmer than the northern plains. Is there any way to manage game herds that get blue tongue, or do you just let them die?

 

[Tip em over]

Re: Northern Plains Whitetail Disease

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: xdeano</div><div class="ubbcode-body">

Doesn't do much to mulies, pronghorn or elk populations.

xdeano

</div></div> Sadly you are incorrect...

 

[Tip em over]

Re: Northern Plains Whitetail Disease

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: ZLBubba</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Deer are so overpopulated in the mid-Atlantic states right now. Maryland and Virginia are overflowing with deer. I'm surprised blue tongue hasn't hit these populations as much, especially considering the climate is warmer than the northern plains. Is there any way to manage game herds that get blue tongue, or do you just let them die? </div></div>They are falling in record numbers here in Montana.. They claim our herds are lacking the immunities needed to fight the virus unlike critters elsewhere.

 

[Night Hunter]

Re: Northern Plains Whitetail Disease

EHD is a normal thing.

We have it here in the deep south frequently. It only makes it to the midwest every 5-10 years or so. It really is nothing to worry about...

 

[rpk762]

Re: Northern Plains Whitetail Disease

It was pretty effective in removing the white tail over here. There are some right along the river but once you get about 10 miles maybe 15 west of the Missouri then all you see is mule deer. I have not seen a white tail since early season.

 

[kurt]

Re: Northern Plains Whitetail Disease

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: ZLBubba</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Man guys, I'm sorry to hear that. My buddy and I were planning a South Dakota whitetail hunt this year, but we may reconsider since the tags may get revoked.

How does blue tongue effect muley, pronghorn, and elk populations? </div></div>

I saw on average between 50-100 whitetails west river deer hunting this year but talked to people in other parts of the county that had found alot of dead ones to. It was really spotty where it hit. Which part of the state where you thinking it can be hit and miss. I know the game and fish wanted gave us a any whitetail and 2 does tags to help get rid of some of them where i go.

 

[450NE]

Re: Northern Plains Whitetail Disease

I used to be a deer farmer and unfortunately this is something I know about. EHD and Blue Tongue are actually two different diseases although the symptoms are the same.

EHD and Blue Tongue are both common in the south. Most southern animals have a built in immunity to it. EHD and Blue Tongue are both spread by mites.

Warm weather allows these mites to flourish in areas where the cold usually keeps them out.

A lot of deer farmers used to try to bring down northern bucks to take advantage of huge genetics. Unfortunately, they often succumb to EHD because they don't have the built in immunity.

There has been a lot of effort put into developing a vaccine but as far as I know it hasn't been really successful.

EHD can spread through a deer herd like wildfire. It's a horrible way to die. EHD is like most other hemoragic diseases in that way.

Hope for cold weather. Killing off the mites is only solution.

Cheers,
Richard

 

[ZLBubba]

Re: Northern Plains Whitetail Disease

Thanks for the information. We've had a fairly mild winter but for a couple cold snaps. How's it been in the Plains?

 

[Fisky]

Re: Northern Plains Whitetail Disease

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: ZLBubba</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Thanks for the information. We've had a fairly mild winter but for a couple cold snaps. How's it been in the Plains? </div></div>

Well, today is Jan 9th and I was picking up dog shit in my backyard tonight after work in a sweatshirt. I wasn't digging it out of 3 ft snow drifts, I was actually walking in and picking it up out of grass. Think we hit a high of 52 today. NEVER in my life have I experienced anything like this. We have shattered record highs about every other day so far this year. We have NO snow, none, and a lot of the lakes are opened back up in the middle. There were guys out on one of the local lakes last weekend trying to fish a half sunken ice house out with a fricken boat. To say we are having a mild winter is an understatement. It's simply unbelievable.

Our deer and pheasants certainly needed this, as well as a lot of people. The last few winters, and consequently, spring flooding, has taken it's toll on quite a few people.

 

[Night Hunter]

Re: Northern Plains Whitetail Disease

EHD is actually worse during years of drought. The midge carries the disease and passes it along when it bites. As deer numbers around a particular water source increase the disease spreads quicker. It is near 100% fatal to deer in the midwest and points north but as stated in the south or deer have immunities to it.

Crosses of deer with northern genetics are also susceptible here in the south.

 

[kill_goose]

Re: Northern Plains Whitetail Disease

It was a bad break here in ND, especially since it hit in late summer and nobody really found out about it till September when guys started getting afield to do some hunting. The G&F caught a lot of flak for issuing to many tags, but tags are issued in June, and the EHD hit in late July and August. They even offered a voluntary buy back for tags in units that were hit hard.

EHD and Blue Tongue are nothing "new" in ND. Seems to hit our whitetail herd in the western part of the state to some degree every ten years or so. Usually coincides with higher whitetail densities. The mulies and antelope seem to be resistant.

Bad deal if you like whitetails, good thing if you like mulies and dont like seeing the whitetails out compete em for winter forage.

One of the things that contributed to it, at least in ND, was the obscenely large whitetail herd we've had since 2007.

Mother nature works in extremes, extremely high populations to extremely low, too dry to too wet, very cold and very hot.

 

[Boss334OP]

Re: Northern Plains Whitetail Disease

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Fisky</div><div class="ubbcode-body"><div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: ZLBubba</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Thanks for the information. We've had a fairly mild winter but for a couple cold snaps. How's it been in the Plains? </div></div>

Well, today is Jan 9th and I was picking up dog shit in my backyard tonight after work in a sweatshirt. I wasn't digging it out of 3 ft snow drifts, I was actually walking in and picking it up out of grass. Think we hit a high of 52 today. NEVER in my life have I experienced anything like this. We have shattered record highs about every other day so far this year. We have NO snow, none, and a lot of the lakes are opened back up in the middle. There were guys out on one of the local lakes last weekend trying to fish a half sunken ice house out with a fricken boat. To say we are having a mild winter is an understatement. It's simply unbelievable.

Our deer and pheasants certainly needed this, as well as a lot of people. The last few winters, and consequently, spring flooding, has taken it's toll on quite a few people. </div></div>

Yesterday, in Grand Forks, I saw a bunch of kids running outside in shorts and t-shirts. The weather is disturbingly pleasant.