Chronic wasting disease is the only transmissible spongiform encephalopathy (TSE) that is transmissible to free-ranging deer and elk and is becoming a major concern for wildlife managers. To understand the spread and establishment of a disease it is important to understand the underlying parameters facilitating disease transmission such as animal movements and contact rates. From 2004-2008 white-tailed deer were captured and fitted with global positioning system (GPS) collars in the agricultural landscapes of central Illinois and in a typical exurban habitat near Carbondale, Illinois. Deer location date will be analyzed to estimate deer movement patterns and direct and indirect contact rates in different habitats. These data along with several other parameters obtained from literature will be used to construct a spatially explicit individual-based model that incorporates the spread and prevalence of chronic wasting disease in different Illinois landscapes. Sensitivity analyses will be performed in order to estimate the relevance of different parameters, and the results will be compared to known epidemiological models of the spread of chronic wasting disease.

BS in Zoology, University of Copenhagen, Denmark

MS in Population Ecology,University of Copenhagen, Denmark