Attention Northeast Area Hunters

Congratulations on drawing a Game Management Unit 41-59 hunt! The Northeast Area is a priority monitoring area in 2024 for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD). The New Mexico Department of Game and Fish needs your help to monitor the current extent of the disease. CWD has not been detected in any GMU in the Northeast Area.

You can take part by bringing the head of your harvested animal to a CWD collection station or Department Area Office. If bringing the head to an area office, please call beforehand to ensure that there is staffing to perform disease testing.

A collection station will be located at the intersection of Hwy 64 and Hwy 285 in Tres Piedras on the following dates:

• Oct. 5-9, 2024
• Oct. 26-30, 2024

Heads should be brought to the station or area office within 48 hours of the kill, but keeping the head cold or on ice (not frozen) can extend the window for testing.

Your participation is voluntary and appreciated. Participating hunters will be entered into a special draw and may be selected to receive an elk or oryx incentive authorization!

 

Chronic Wasting Disease Facts

• CWD is a chronic, fatal disease of the central nervous system that impacts the family Cervidae (mule deer, white-tailed deer, elk and moose).
• CWD belongs to the group of rare diseases called transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs). These disorders are caused by abnormally folded proteins called “prions.”
• Infected animals can shed prions in saliva, feces, urine and after death through remains.
• If infection rates become high enough, CWD can affect a herd’s ability to sustain itself.
• To date, there have been no reported cases of CWD infection in humans.
• Public health officials advise against consuming meat or other tissue from infected animals.

Please visit our website at https://wildlife.dgf.nm.gov/conservation/invasive-species-and-diseases/chronic-wasting-disease/ for additional resources and more information on CWD.

 

Best of luck on your hunt!

 

Sincerely,

New Mexico Department of Game and Fish