ABSTRACT
Significant advances in our understanding of diseases and parasites in recent decades provide greater perspective of their relationships with deer. As diagnostic capabilities improve and long-term monitoring programs increase, so does our broader understanding of diseases that affect wildlife, livestock, or human health. Early investigations focused heavily on identification of individual diseases and parasites to understand basic susceptibility. Subsequent research efforts and long-term monitoring programs provide greater perspective on the general occurrence and significance of these agents in deer populations. Ongoing improvements in techniques and analytic approaches continue to expand our knowledge and interpretation of the complex relationships among biologic, social, and environmental factors that interact within ecosystems. Disease agents, parasites, toxins, anomalies, injuries, and natural starvation all have a role in the outcome of those interactions. Expanding human activities resulting in habitat changes, movement of animals, artificial feeding operations, and climate change all lead to a disruption in the underlying balance of deer populations with their diseases and parasites. As systemic perturbations continue, we can expect an expanding sphere of changes that will challenge deer and deer managers for generations to come.
