Montana: Sudden death of over 100 deer along Clark Ford River being investigated- Confirmed EHD

[Emily]

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/09/18/us-usa-montana-deer-idUSBRE98H15J20130918

Wildlife managers track mysterious deer die-off in Montana


By Laura Zuckerman

Wed Sep 18, 2013 5:35pm EDT

(Reuters) - Wildlife managers in Montana are trying to pinpoint whether a disease, environmental toxin or chemical agent has caused a die-off of more than 100 whitetail deer in wetlands along a river corridor in the western part of the state.

The Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks office in Missoula began to receive reports from landowners and boaters 10 days ago of dead deer along the Clark Fork River, and state wildlife biologists had tallied 103 deer carcasses by Tuesday.

"The deer appear to drop dead in their tracks," said agency educator Vivaca Crowser, adding that the deer showed no outward signs of injury or sickness...

 

[Emily]

Re: Montana: Sudden death of over 100 deer along Clark Ford River being investigated

Re: Montana: Sudden death of over 100 deer along Clark Ford River being investigated

http://missoulian.com/news/local/biologists-floored-by-mortality-of-whitetail-deer-along-clark-fork/article_a11345b8-20d9-11e3-b61b-001a4bcf887a.html

15 hours ago ? By Rob Chaney
FRENCHTOWN ? Something is killing whitetail deer by the dozens along the Clark Fork River.

?This feels strange,? Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks biologist Jay Kolbe said as he walked through high grass on an island across from the former Smurfit-Stone Container Corp. pulp mill. ?We ought to be bumping into whitetail all along here.?
...
And mysteriously, the trouble zone seems confined to a short reach of river between the Erskine Fishing Access Site and Harpers Bridge along the Clark Fork, plus some parts of the Mill Creek drainage to the north...

http://www.nbcmontana.com/news/paper-mill-site-owner-against-superfund-listing/-/14594602/20316226/-/sydn0oz/-/index.html

Paper mill site owner against Superfund listing
MISSOULA COUNTY
By The Associated Press
POSTED: 9:53 AM May 27 2013
...
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency last week proposed adding the Frenchtown site to the Superfund National Priorities List.

The site near the Clark Fork River is contaminated with dioxins, furans, arsenic and manganese associated with the former mill's wastewater and sludge ponds. The EPA says no private residential or municipal drinking water wells appear to have been affected...

What about sources of water that wildlife use?

 

[Shiloh]

Re: Montana: Sudden death of over 100 deer along Clark Ford River being investigated- Confirmed EHD

Source: http://mtstandard.com/news/state-an...cle_4856b10c-2fe9-11e3-a67b-0019bb2963f4.html

Deer deaths blamed on virus - Disease carried by tiny midges
3 hours ago

Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks reports that lab results received Monday show that white-tailed deer deaths, first reported in the Missoula Valley in mid-September, can be attributed to epizootic hemorrhagic disease, according to a news release from FWP.

Nearly 400 dead deer have been reported since the September outbreak began, and FWP sent in samples from several dozen deer for testing...