MAMMOTH HOT SPRINGS, WY – Yellowstone National Park and the Wyoming Game and Fish Department (WGFD) recently confirmed the presence of chronic wasting disease (CWD) in the carcass of an adult mule deer buck found near Yellowstone Lake in the southeastern section of the park. This is the first confirmed positive detection of the disease in Yellowstone National Park. The mule deer buck was originally captured by WGFD staff near Cody, Wyoming, in March 2023 as part of a population dynamics study and fitted with a GPS collar. The collar signaled the animal died mid-October 2023. In coordination with Yellowstone staff, WGFD located the carcass on the Promontory, a landmass that separates the South and Southeast arms of Yellowstone Lake and collected samples for testing. The samples tested positive for CWD based on multiple diagnostic tests performed at WGFD’s Wildlife Health Laboratory.
Next steps
Yellowstone staff will prioritize the following actions to manage the disease as there is no effective strategy to eradicate it once established.
- Increase collaboration and information sharing with WGFD and other state agencies to identify areas within Yellowstone with increased risk for CWD.
- Increase monitoring for the presence of CWD in other deer, elk and moose in the park.
- Increase the investigation of carcasses and collection of samples for testing.
