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Abstract
The white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) is the most economically important species for conservation of wildlife in North America. Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a fatal prion disease of cervids that was first discovered in 1967 in Colorado. Chronic wasting disease has since become one of the greatest threats to white-tailed deer and other cervids across the United States and internationally. My research evaluated the effects of CWD on deer behavior and demography in northwestern Arkansas within a CWD management zone. Chronic wasting disease was first detected in Arkansas in elk (Cervus canadensis) during 2015 and later in white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) during 2016. Subsequent surveillance demonstrated a high CWD prevalence (>20%) in deer within a 10-county region, indicating that CWD was in the state for decades. I investigated the effects of CWD on adult and neonate survival, anti-predator behavior as well as categorized the scavenger community impact on CWD spread. Lastly, I used the using the repeated testing of CWD to create a multi-method model to better estimate CWD prevalence. This work was part of a large 4-year epidemiological case-control study involving the capture of positive and presumed negative individuals. I used active and passive sampling techniques including GPS/radio telemetry, CWD testing, and trail camera grids to provide rigorous estimates of white-tailed deer demographic parameters and behavioral states. My results provided much-needed insight into an understudied region (i.e., Southeastern United States) and will be used to inform a spatially explicit host-pathogen model with the goal of informing management decisions aimed at slowing the spread of disease.