Deer mortality traced to 'biting midge'

Pennsylvania needs a good, hard frost to kill off the remnants of an insect that has killed more than 1,000 deer in the southwestern part of the state.

Dr. Walter Cottrell, a veterinarian with the Game Commission, said this year's epizootic hemorrhagic disease (EHD) outbreak is worse than the one in 2002.

"A good frost is what is needed to kill the insects responsible for spreading the virus," Cottrell said. "Officers' observations and those of concerned citizens suggest that the number is in excess of 1,000 animals at this time and could increase."

Dead deer found in the counties of Greene, Washington, Allegheny and Beaver have been confirmed to be infected. Deer from Cambria and Westmoreland counties are being tested.

EHD cannot be contracted by humans and it is rare for the virus to cause clinical signs in livestock. Deer are affected by the bite of small insects, known as "biting midges. It is not spread from deer to deer by contact.