New deer carcass transport rules are in effect
By Ted Pennekamp
Governor Scott Walker approved and signed new emergency rules Sept. 5 regarding the transporting of deer carcasses. The new rules went into effect Oct. 1, and will last for nine months. All hunters and other interested persons are encouraged to read the new rules on the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources website (dnr.wi.gov).
For now, the new regulations are temporary but may be made permanent by the DNR Board at a later date. The new rules do not need to go before the state legislature.
“We plan on bringing a permanent rule to the board sometime over the winter,” said Wildlife Regulations Policy Specialist Scott Karel.
Karel said the new rules were put in place to assist in limiting the spread of chronic wasting disease (CWD).
“There was a 14 percent increase in CWD-affected counties from November 2017 to May 2018. However, there has been an interest in this topic for some time,” said Karel. “During the 2018 Wisconsin Conservation Congress spring hearings, the DNR asked an advisory question similar to the carcass transportation portion of this rule. That question was approved by the voters and slated to be part of a permanent rule in 2019. Also, this year’s spring hearings saw 81 resolutions brought by members of the public in 47 different counties asking the department to develop stronger safeguards to prevent the spread of CWD. Through this rule, we now have the opportunity to respond to this public input in a meaningful way for this fall’s hunting seasons.”
The infectious nature of the CWD prion contributes to an increased risk of introduction and spread of CWD if dead animals are brought to areas where CWD does not exist, according to the new regulations as published on the DNR website.
“Every time an infected deer carcass comes in contact with a new environment, there is a risk that it will contaminate that environment,” Karel said. “The carcass transportation portion of this rule is designed to keep potentially-infected deer carcasses local, so deer harvested in an area that contains CWD aren’t brought to areas of the state that have a much lower prevalence of CWD, areas with no positive CWD tests, or areas that are only considered CWD-affected due to a positive in a farm-raised deer.”
The new rules state that both whole wild-deer carcasses and certain parts of carcasses from CWD-affected counties can be moved within the county of harvest. Recent rule changes prohibit the transportation of whole deer carcasses and certain parts of deer carcasses out of any CWD-affected county. There are limited exceptions to these changes, which are outlined below. Due to these changes, the former regulation that required deer to remain intact while afield (or legally quartered, with all parts removed from the field and properly disposed) has now been lifted. Lawfully harvested deer may now be processed in the field without any quartering limitations, and carcass parts may be left at the point of kill (such as the spine or bones).
Also, hunters are allowed to take whole cervid carcasses or any parts of carcasses harvested in the CWD-affected counties or in any state or province where CWD has been found, into any part of Wisconsin, provided the carcass (or nonexempt parts) are taken to a licensed taxidermist or meat processor within 72 hours of the carcass leaving the county of harvest, or within 72 hours of entering Wisconsin from another state. Meat processors and taxidermists are excluded since they must follow strict rules regarding deer carcass waste disposal, thereby removing the risks associated with improper disposal.
The department does not intend to preclude hunters from moving a deer head outside of the CWD-affected county of harvest if that head is being transported to an approved CWD sampling cooperator, self-service kiosk or staffed CWD testing location for the purpose of submitting the head for removal of tissues for CWD testing. After sample tissue has been removed from deer heads submitted, the heads will be disposed of properly.
If not brought to a licensed taxidermist or meat processor within 72 hours, the only parts from wild cervids legally-harvested in the CWD-affected counties that may be transported beyond those counties are listed below. These are the same parts that are allowed into Wisconsin from other states and provinces that have CWD.
Deer parts that may be moved
•Meat that is cut and wrapped (commercially or privately).
•Quarters or other portions of meat to which no part of the spinal column is attached.
•Meat that has been deboned.
•Hides with no heads attached.
•Finished taxidermy heads.
•Antlers with no tissue attached.
•Clean skull plates with no lymphoid or brain tissue attached.
•Clean skulls with no lymphoid or brain tissue attached.
•Upper canine teeth.
Deer carcass movement into Wisconsin
Chronic wasting disease has been found in wild cervids in the following states and provinces: Arkansas, Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New York, North Dakota, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming; Alberta and Saskatchewan.
Hunters from other states/provinces should be aware of their state’s carcass restrictions of deer harvested in a CWD-affected area in Wisconsin before heading home. Whole carcasses and parts of carcasses from these states and provinces, other than those listed above, are not allowed into Wisconsin unless taken to a meat processor or taxidermist within 72 hours of entry.
