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Chronic Wasting Disease Management
Chronic wasting disease, or CWD, is a fatal disease of the central nervous system in deer and elk. Since the first case of Chronic Wasting Disease was discovered in Illinois, the Illinois Department of Natural Resources started a "targeted surveillance program" for CWD in wild deer which was first proposed by the Southeastern Cooperative Wildlife Disease Study, a diagnostic and research service which investigates wildlife diseases.
The Department has implemented recent changes to the CWD management program. See the 2025-2029 CWD Pilot Project for more information.
This site provides consolidated CWD information including: CWD statistics that show the Total Cases per Year and Total Cases per Year per County, FAQ's, a query system for samples taken, test results for hunters, annual reports, and other CWD resources.
Below is an interactive map that contains all of the township sections where positive CWD samples were found. Click on the red box to see what years' positive samples were reported for the section.
CWD Annual Reports
CWD Quick Links
- Summary of Illinois’s CWD Surveillance and Management
- CWD Management in Illinois: Fact or Fiction?
- Special CWD Season Information
- Late Winter/CWD Deer Hunting Open Counties Map
- Illinois Cumulative CWD-Infected Sections Map
- CWD Check Station Locations Map
- CWD Testing Locations By County – Where to Get Your Deer Tested
- CWD Testing Locations Interactive Map
- Check your Chronic Wasting Disease Test Results
- Chronic Wasting Disease Information Query System
- Firearm Deer Hunting Regulations for CWD Counties
- Administrative Rule 17-625 Special White-Tailed Deer Season for Disease Control
- Illinois Department of Agriculture’s CWD Webpage
Videos
Below is a series of videos:
- Part 1-Introduction,
- Part 2-Testing CWD Samples,
- Part 3-Sharpshooting,
- Part 4-Common Questions, Research and Safe Handling of Deer.
Note: Click on the title "Illinois Chronic Wasting Disease Management" (top strip) for viewing