12:39 PM EDT, October 20, 2012 LANSING, Mich. (AP) — A disease
that began killing deer last summer has now wiped out more than
8,000 whitetails in Michigan. Officials believe the number is
certain to climb as farmers harvest corn and discover more
carcasses. Brian Bouwkamp, who hunts near Muskegon, tells The
Detroit News (http://bit.ly/PIgydX) he can smell dead deer on
his family's 60 acres. The disease is not a threat to humans. It
is transmitted by a biting fly and causes internal bleeding,
high fever, loss of appetite and weakness. The Department of
Natural Resources says summer drought and high temperatures are
contributing to the high number of cases. The dead deer are in
the lower half of the Lower Peninsula. Some hunters might hold
their fire in November to allow the deer population to recover.
Information from: The Detroit News, http://detnews.com/