News – Sheridan Media
The Wyoming Game and Fish Department is asking hunters for help this fall in collecting samples from mule deer and elk for chronic wasting disease testing in target hunt areas of the Big Horn Basin.
Game and Fish is requesting samples from elk harvested in the North Bighorn herd, which includes Elk Hunt Areas 35, 36, 37, 38, 39 and 40. Hunt Areas 39 and 40 are located within the Big Horn Basin. Samples are also being requested from mule deer harvested in the Shoshone River herd, which includes Deer Hunt Areas 121, 122 and 123; the Clarks Fork herd unit, which includes Deer Hunt Areas 105, 106 and 109; and the Southwest Bighorns herd unit, which includes Deer Hunt Areas 35, 36, 37, 39, 40 and 164.
Hunters who harvest mule deer bucks or adult elk in these hunt areas are asked to submit samples to Game and Fish for testing. The department also encourages hunters to submit samples from does and white-tailed deer within focus areas. Samples from other deer, elk and moose taken throughout the Big Horn Basin will also be tested if requested.
In response to rising CWD prevalence in the Southwest Bighorns mule deer herd unit, Game and Fish has made sample submission mandatory for Type 1 and Type 7 license holders in Deer Hunt Area 164 during the 2025 hunting season. The requirement does not apply to general season, Type 3, Type 6 or Type 8 license holders, though voluntary submission is encouraged.
Samples collected from mule deer and elk in targeted areas help Game and Fish monitor CWD as part of a long-term statewide plan. CWD is present across Wyoming and is fatal to deer, elk and moose.
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Last modified: October 3, 2025