HARRISBURG — Traditionally, thousands of Pennsylvanians get an early start on the firearms deer season by hunting in the nearby states of Maryland, New York, Ohio, Virginia and West Virginia.
Those hunters can now legally import deer carcasses from most areas of those states under amended rules governing chronic wasting disease by the Pennsylvania Game Commission. In amending the rules relating to CWD, the PGC now only prohibits the importation only of cervid carcasses taken within the areas in those states where CWD has been detected.
There are 17 other states and two Canadian provinces where CWD has been detected that the importation ban applies to the entire state. In addition the ban applies to Allegany County, Maryland; Madison and Oneida counties, New York; Holmes County, Ohio; Frederick, Shenandoah, Warren and Clarke counties, Virginia; and Hampshire, Hardy and Morgan counties, West Virginia.
In making the announcement, PGC executive director Matt Hough said the whole-state ban was enacted to allow for better enforcement of rules regarding the importation of high-risk cervid parts to protect Pennsylvania’s wild deer. With deer seasons already in progress, however, he said the timing of the announcement resulted in confusion and concerns being expressed deer hunters, processors and taxidermists.
“In responding to those concerns, the Game Commission pulled back the whole-state ban for this deer season and will work with those who are affected on further rule changes that might become effective next year,” Hough said. “I want to emphasize that the introduction and spread of CWD in Pennsylvania’s wild-deer population remains a serious issue and that agency will continue to regularly review and adjust all measures to minimize the impacts of CWD in Pennsylvania as necessary.”
Remaining in effect is the ban on high-risk cervid parts being imported into Pennsylvania from deer, elk, moose, mule deer and other cervids from Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Wisconsin and Wyoming. Also included in the ban are the Canadian provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan.
Almost all professional butchers in the targeted states are fully aware of the rules governing CWD, but many hunters do self-butchering in camps, so it is important they understand how to properly prepare their game. A good way to learn this is by attending butchering demonstrations, such as those held at various times of the year at Cabela’s, Hamburg, or outdoors sports shows. There are also educational DVDs produced on field dressing and butchering game that are sold at many sporting goods outlets.
Hunters who take cervids in the identified states, counties and provinces must leave behind the carcass parts that have the highest risk for transmitting CWD. Those parts are the head that contains the brain, tonsils, eyes and any lymph nodes; spinal cord/backbone; spleen; skull plate with attached antlers, if visible brain or spinal cord tissue is present; cape, if visible brain or spinal cord tissue is present; upper canine teeth, if root structure or other soft tissue is present; any object or article containing visible brain or spinal cord tissue; unfinished taxidermy mounts; and brain-tanned hides.
Hunters who are successful in those states and provinces from which the importation of high-risk parts into Pennsylvania is banned are allowed to import meat from any deer, elk, moose, mule deer or caribou, so long as the backbone is not present. Also allowed are cleaned skull plates with attached antlers, if no visible brain or spinal cord tissue is present; tanned hide or raw hide with no visible brain or spinal cord tissue present; capes, if no visible brain or spinal cord tissue is present; upper canine teeth, if no root structure or other soft tissue is present; and finished taxidermy mounts.
First identified in Colorado in 1967, CWD affects members of the cervid family, including all species of deer, elk and moose and detailed information is available on the CDC website at www.cdc.gov. To date, no strong evidence of CWD transmission to humans has been reported, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, but the disease is always fatal to the cervids it infects, and, as a precaution, the CDC recommends people avoid eating meat from deer and elk that look sick or test positive for CWD.
Pennsylvania first detected chronic wasting disease in 2012 at a captive deer facility in Adams County. Since then the disease been detected in free-ranging deer in Bedford, Blair, Cambria and Fulton counties, and in captive deer at a Jefferson County facility.