Iowa Deer Hemorrhagic Disease Outbreak

(Des Moines) Iowa’s deer population is in the midst of another outbreak of hemorrhagic disease, which tends to affect Iowa deer from late summer to early fall. Though outbreak severity varies annually, it began increasing in September, with roughly 750 related deer mortalities reported throughout the state, considered a moderate outbreak compared to past years.

Jace Elliott, an Iowa DNR Deer Biologist, says this is a viral disease spread by a small black-biting insect known as a midge.

Elliott says they expect 1,000 reports this fall, compared to 2,000 one year ago. The DNR added new online tools to the Deer Hunting webpage, allowing the public to report and monitor hemorrhagic disease activity.

Hemorrhagic disease has been reported in at least 78 Iowa counties, though disease activity has generally been mild at the county scale at fewer than 50 mortalities per county.