Michigan DNR Maps EHD Deer Reports by Township as 15 Counties Confirm Cases

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources published a map of suspected epizootic hemorrhagic disease (EHD) cases in deer at the township level, the agency said in a release on October 30. Laboratory tests have confirmed the disease in 15 counties so far in 2026: Allegan, Branch, Clinton, Calhoun, Hillsdale, Ingham, Jackson, Kalamazoo, Lapeer, Lenawee, Montcalm, Oakland, Oceana, Saginaw and Washtenaw. The DNR called that comparable to 16 counties in 2025 and 15 in 2024.

The map shows every 36-square-mile township-range block where the DNR has received reports consistent with EHD, plus the counties with laboratory-confirmed cases. Reporting is voluntary and not every report can be tested, so the agency describes the map as an indication of reported activity, not a count of deer deaths. It will be updated about weekly while the outbreak remains active.

EHD is a viral disease spread by biting midges in late summer and early fall, and outbreaks end when frost kills the midges. Deer exposed to the virus recover or die within a few days, which is why several dead deer can turn up in a small area. To confirm a case the DNR must collect a carcass within 16 hours of death. EHD deer deaths have occurred on and off in Michigan since 2006.

“We have heard from hunters who are concerned about deer losses in their hunting areas and want more information about where EHD is occurring,” said Brent Rudolph, the DNR’s deer, elk and moose management specialist. Research after the state’s 2012 outbreak found deer numbers rose over the following five years in one affected area while surveys a few miles away showed no change. Rudolph said some hunters may choose to take fewer antlerless deer where losses have been heavy. Hunters report suspected cases through the DNR’s Eyes in the Field portal, and the map sits on the department’s EHD page at Michigan.gov/EHD.