PA Deer Test Positive For COVID-19 Antibodies

PENNSYLVANIA — Nearly half of the Pennsylvania deer tested recently had coronavirus antibodies, according to a federal study that looked at the spread of the illness amongst deer populations across the East and Midwest. The presence of the virus amongst deer is unlikely to impact human cases, experts believe.

"The risk of animals spreading SARS-CoV-2 to people is considered low," the USDA told Patch in an emailed statement.

Further, despite the presence of the antibodies, none of the nearly 500 deer tested in the USDA study appeared to be ill.

However, it remains unclear how and where the virus first leapt over into the deer community. While there's a possibility the animals could harbor a new strain of coronavirus, biologists from the USDA said more research is needed to see if they could spawn future outbreaks.

The tests were completed across several states between January 2020 and March 2021.

Pennsylvania saw 44 percent of its deer population in the study test positive for antibodies. A total of 142 deer were tested from across the state, primarily in central and southeastern Pennsylvania.

Elsewhere, 67 percent of deer tested in Michigan had been exposed to coronavirus, along with 7 percent in Illinois and 31 percent in New York. While there's a possibility the animals could harbor a new strain of coronavirus, biologists from the USDA said more research is needed to see if they could spawn future outbreaks.

All told, a roughly a third of all deer tested in these states had the virus.

The study has yet to be peer-reviewed, leading some scientists to question if the results will distract from the ultimate threat, which is human to human transmission.

"At present, there's no evidence that SARS-CoV-2 is having any detrimental effect on deer. And for humans, our infinitely greater problem is spread from other humans," Daniel Bausch, a zoonotic diseases expert, told National Geographic.

Other laboratory experiments have confirmed that the virus can be transmitted between cats and field mice, but these animals also typically do not fall ill.

Those who hunt deer are already recommended by the CDC to wear gloves when handling the animal and thoroughly cook any meat to make sure pathogens are destroyed.

The most interesting part of the study, USDA researchers said, is how deer contracted the disease to begin with. If COVID-19 can be passed from animal to animal, virologists cited in the study said there could be a worry that domestic livestock become infected.

"Multiple activities could bring deer into contact with people, including captive (deer) operations, field research, conservation work, wildlife tourism, wildlife rehabilitation, supplemental feeding, and hunting," the USDA researchers wrote. Other possibilities include the deer contracted it through contaminated wastewater or from exposure to other infected species like mink.

In Wisconsin, some dead minks tested positive for COVID-19. Prior to that, hundreds of workers in the Netherlands reported becoming ill with mink-related variants after an outbreak.

Still, researchers said there is a far greater chance of catching COVID-19 from another human than an animal, even for hunters. But the study opens the door to more funding and interest in wildlife diseases.

With reporting from Patch correspondent Eileen O'Gorman