In a recent federal study, nearly half, or 44 percent, of Pennsylvania deer tested positive for coronavirus, writes Justin Heinze for patch.com.

Researchers are puzzled how the deer showed up with the coronavirus antibodies. The deer came from central and southeastern Pennsylvania.

The risk of deer spreading it to humans is low, according to the USDA.

None of  the 142 deer in the study were ill from the virus. The study was conducted between January 2020 and March 2021.

“At present, there’s no evidence that SARS-CoV-2 is having any detrimental effect on deer. And for humans, our infinitely greater problem is spread from other humans,” said Daniel Bausch, a zoonotic diseases expert.

Deer hunters are urged by the CDC to wear gloves when handling the animals and to thoroughly cook the meat.

It’s unclear how the virus made it into the deer population.

Deer do come into contact with people through hunting, field and conservation work, wildlife tourism and rehabilitation, and supplemental feeding. They could also contract the virus from contaminated wastewater or exposure to other infected species.

If it can be transmitted from animal to animal, that could lead to domestic livestock becoming infected.

Read more at patch.com about this USDA deer study.

Here’s a news report on the USDA deer study.