Ehrlichia chaffeensis, transmitted from Amblyomma americanum ticks, causes human monocytic ehrlichiosis. It also infects white-tailed deer, dogs and several other vertebrates. Deer are its reservoir hosts, while humans and dogs are incidental hosts. E. chaffeensis protein expression is influenced by its growth in macrophages and tick cells. We report here infection progression in deer or dogs i...

Eradication of bovine tuberculosis (TB) from free-ranging white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) requires mortality rates of infected deer exceed the rate of new infection. Efforts to reduce TB transmission in Michigan, USA, are based on 2 assumptions: 1) deer mortality may be increased through recreational hunting, and 2) encounter rates between infected and noninfected deer may be reduced...

Forest understories across the northern United States (US) are a complex of tree seedlings, endemic forbs, herbs, shrubs, and introduced plant species within a forest structure defined by tree and forest floor attributes. The substantial increase in white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus Zimmerman) populations over the past decades has resulted in heavy browse pressure in many of these fores...

Suburban deer populations have been increasing in the eastern U.S., resulting in deer-human conflicts that can not always be resolved by a traditional management approach., Professionals responsible for management of deer damage (herd control and extension education) need information on the extent and nature of deer damage in suburban situations. Attitudes of suburban residential property owner...

The red deer (Cervus elaphus) is an iconic species in Scotland and, due to its value as a game species, an important element of the Scottish rural economy. The native status of this species is sometimes questioned because of many recorded introductions of nonnative deer in the past that were an attempt to improve trophy size. In this study, we assessed the impact of past introductions on the ge...

Chronic wasting disease (CWD) was discovered in free-ranging white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) in south-central Wisconsin in 2002. The current control method for CWD in the state is the harvest of deer from affected areas to reduce population density and lower CWD transmission. We used spatial regression methods to identify factors associated with deer harvest across south-central Wisc...

Escherichia coli O157:H7 (EC O157) is an important zoonosis. White-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) have been implicated in transmission of this bacterium to humans and have been suggested as reservoirs that might affect carriage in cattle populations. Our study objectives were to estimate prevalence of EC O157 in feces of hunter-harvested deer and to describe fecal shedding patterns in a c...

To determine the ability of experimentally inoculated white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) to transmit Mycobacterium bovis to naïve deer through the sharing of feed, four deer were intratonsillarly inoculated with 4 x 10(5) colony-forming units of M. bovis. On a daily basis, feed not consumed by inoculated deer after approximately 8 hr was offered to four naïve deer maintained in a separa...

Mycobacterium bovis, the causative agent of bovine tuberculosis, has become established in free-ranging white-tailed deer Odocoileus virginianus in northeastern Michigan. The practice of supplemental feeding of white-tailed deer during the winter is believed to contribute to transmission of M. bovis between deer. The current study was conducted to determine the ability of M. bovis to survive on...

Heterospecific communication signals sometimes convey relevant information for animal survival. For example, animals use or eavesdrop on heterospecific alarm calls concerning common predators. Indeed, most observations have been reported regarding anti-predator strategies. Use of heterospecific signals has rarely been observed as part of a foraging strategy. Here, I report empirical evidence, c...