White-Tailed Deer In Pennsylvania Tested Positive For COVID-19 Antibodies
By: KDKA-TV News Staff
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) - Some deer in multiple states, including Pennsylvania, tested positive for COVID-19 antibodies.
A study from the U.S. Department of Agriculture showed certain wild white-tailed deer populations in Illinois, Michigan, New York and Pennsylvania were exposed to SARS-CoV-2.
Out of the nearly 500 samples collected between January 2020 and March 2021, COVID-19 antibodies were detected in 33%.
The Department of Agriculture says it doesn't know how the deer were exposed to COVID-19, whether it was through people, the environment, other deer or another animal. There were no reports of clinical illness with any of the deer populations surveyed.
Researchers say there's no evidence that animals, including deer, are playing a significant role in the spread of COVID-19 to people.