(Can) – Chronic wasteful disease was detected in four more counties in Illinois. The CWD has been reported in Putnam, Marshall, Adams and Peoria counties, expanding the geographic presence of disease in deer populations in the northern Illinois free area, the Illinois Department of Natural Resources has announced.
Adams County is the first documented case recorded outside the cutting edge of the CWD endemic region.
CWD is a constantly fatal neurological disease that affects the long-term health of white tail deer in Illinois.
The CWD was first recorded in Illinois in 2002 near Roscoe. It was subsequently detected in 25 counties in northern Illinois and is now south to Adams County in western Illinois.
In early February 2025, CWD was detected and confirmed from routine monitoring of Hunter Harvest deer through diagnostic tests in Putnam, Marshall and Adams counties. Peoria County was identified in two years old deer with clinical signs consistent with CWD infection using the same diagnostic testing procedure.
The Adams County sample was subjected to genetic testing to ensure genetic agreement between the submitted tissue samples and the source deer.
The affected states of Illinois are currently Adams, Boone, Bureau, Carol, Cook, DeCalb, DuPage, Ford, Grandi, Joe Davis, Kane, Kankakey, Kendall, Lake, LaSalle, Lee, Livingston, Marshall, McHenry, Ogle, Peoria, Putnam, Plasnum and Winnebug.
“Illinois is a national leader in managing and slowing the spread of CWD, and over the past 20 years IDNR’s program has served as a model for other states,” said IDNR Director Natalie Phelpsphine.
The World Health Organization and Disease Control Center Furthermore, prevention does not link CWD to human transmission. However, they recommend eating meat from CWD-positive deer. Hunters recommend testing deer and avoid consuming brain, spinal cord, eyes, and other tissues known to harbor CWD agents.
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