A special deer hunt will begin Saturday in North Idaho in response to the area’s first case of chronic wasting disease (CWD).
The Idaho Department of Fish and Game announced Monday that it will hold a surveillance hunt from Aug. 24 to Sept. 1 in a portion of Game Management Unit 1 north of Bonners Ferry.
In a news release, Fish and Game said the hunt is meant to determine the prevalence and distribution of CWD in North Idaho.
The Panhandle’s first case of the always-fatal condition was confirmed in a white-tailed deer found dead on private land outside of Bonners Ferry in July.
Last week, the Idaho Fish and Game Commission approved offering 300 either-sex white-tailed deer tags to Idaho residents for the eight-day surveillance hunt.
The hunt will take place in an area bordered by the Moyie and Kootenai Rivers.
TJ Ross, a Fish and Game spokesman, said the agency wants to gather at least 200 samples. Hunters who participate will be required to have their deer sampled for CWD within 24 hours.