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FERRIDAY — Louisiana’s archery season opens Sunday in Concordia Parish and kicks off the second full season of fighting Chronic Wasting Disease. New coolers for CWD samples have been added in Ferriday and Richard K. Yancey Wildlife Management Area in Concordia Parish. 

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries added six new coolers to collect samples for Chronic Wasting Disease testing, a disease always fatal to deer and spread through infectious prions. A portion of Concordia Parish is actually in the Chronic Wasting Disease management zone due to proximity of positives in south Tensas Parish. 

One of these coolers is at the Louisiana Department of Transportation Maintenance Facility at 2201 E. E. Wallace Boulevard in Ferriday. Another cooler is on the Richard K. Yancey WMA south of Vidalia on Louisiana 15.  

Hunters can contact their local field office to have deer tested for CWD. Testing is performed on the brainstem and lymph nodes of the head. The head and five inches or more of the neck with lymph nodes attached can be removed and refrigerated for submission to LDWF while the skull plate and antlers can be removed prior to testing.

LDWF Field Office contact information and locations are as follows:

• Hammond Office 985-543-4777 42371 Phyllis Ann Drive Hammond
• Lafayette Office 337-262-2080 200 Dulles Drive Lafayette
• Lake Charles Office 337-491-2575 1025 Tom Watson Road, Lake Charles
• Minden Office 318-371-3050 9961 Hwy 80, Minden
• Monroe Office 318-343-4044 368 Century Link Dr, Monroe
• Pineville Office 318-487-5885 765 Maryhill Rd., Pineville

Disease Control Area 

It is important to remember deer heads from deer harvested in the Chronic Wasting Disease Control Area can not leave the area. Portions of Concordia Parish north and east of US 425 and US84 are in the Chronic Wasting Disease Zone while portions to the west are not in the zone. A 25 mile radius from a positive detected in Tensas Parish placed the north portion of Concordia Parish in the zone. 

The CWD zone additionally means hunters can not use feeders or mineral licks as these sites create unnatural congregations of deer and could exacerbate the spread of the disease. Food plots do not cause unnatural congregations of deer and are allowed. 

Last year, Louisiana detected 11 new positives, all in Tensas Parish. These positives trended south in location creating the need to expand the control area south to Concordia Parish.