Scientists at Penn State University, in partnership with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, examined hundreds of specimens of white-tailed deer they collected in 2020 and 2021. The results showed that 80% of them were infected with the Corona virus.
So far, no cases of deer-to-human transmission of the virus have been documented, but scientists fear that the virus will mutate inside animals and pass from them to humans.
The elk did not show any symptoms, and it is not yet clear how the virus was transmitted to it, which is why officials are monitoring it to ensure that it does not pose any danger to people in the future.
It is noteworthy that the activities of elk hunting support thousands of jobs in the United States and generate profits amounting to billions of dollars annually.
