LAUDERDALE COUNTY, Ala. — Hunters in Lauderdale and Colbert counties are required to submit all deer harvested for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) testing during specific weekends of the 2024-2025 white-tailed deer season, under Alabama’s new regulations.
The mandatory testing weekends are as follows:
- High-Risk Zone: November 23-24 and December 7-8, 2024
- Buffer Zone: November 23-24, 2024, and January 11-12, 2025
For a full list of sampling locations within the CMZ, hunters can visit the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (ADCNR) website.
The sampling weekends have been scheduled to align with peak hunting times, including the season’s opening weekend and the rut, which is the prime deer hunting season in northwest Alabama. Outside of these weekends, hunters are encouraged to voluntarily drop off samples for testing at designated self-service freezers located throughout the CMZ.
In addition, all deer harvested on public lands within the CMZ—including the Freedom Hills Wildlife Management Area (WMA), Lauderdale WMA, Seven-Mile Island WMA, Cherokee Physically Disabled Hunting Area, and Riverton Community Hunting Area—are required to be sampled throughout the entire hunting season.
The state has also implemented carcass transportation restrictions to help prevent the spread of CWD. Deer harvested in the High-Risk Zone must stay within the zone for disposal, while those harvested in the Buffer Zone must remain within the CMZ. However, deboned meat, cleaned skull plates, and raw hides with no visible brain or spinal cord tissue may be transported outside the zone.
CWD is a contagious, fatal neurological disease affecting white-tailed deer and other cervid species. It is caused by a prion, a mutated protein that attacks the brain, and there is currently no cure for infected animals. The first case of CWD in Alabama was detected in Lauderdale County in January 2022.
For more information about CWD, including a detailed zone map and guidelines on deer testing, hunters and residents are encouraged to visit here.
