10/16/2026
Press release
October 15, 2026
Contact: Marianne Gauldin, (334) 242-3857
Mandatory Testing Dates Announced for CWD Management Zone
Under Alabama’s Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) Management Zone Regulation (220-2-.167), all deer harvested in the High-Risk and the Buffer zones of the state’s CWD Management Zone (CMZ) must be submitted for CWD testing during specific weekends of the 2026-2027 white-tailed deer season.
The High-Risk Zone contains all of Lauderdale and Colbert counties and part of Franklin County, extending north of State Highway 24 from the Alabama/Mississippi state line east to U.S. Highway 43. The Buffer Zone includes the remaining part of Franklin County south of Highway 24 and east of U.S. Highway 43.
High-Risk Zone Mandatory Sampling Weekends
November 21-22, 2026 (first weekend of gun-deer season)
January 16-17, 2027
February 6- 7, 2027
Buffer Zone Mandatory Sampling Weekends
January 16-17, 2027
February 6-7, 2027
Alternate Dates if Needed Due to Weather or Other Circumstances
December 26-27, 2026 (High-Risk Zone)
January 23-24, 2027 (High-Risk and Buffer zones)
Mandatory weekends for the High-Risk Zone and Buffer Zone correspond with peaks in Alabama’s deer harvest, the season’s opening weekend and the rut in northwest Alabama. Outside of those weekends, hunters are encouraged to voluntarily drop off samples for testing at the self-service freezers located in the appropriate CMZ zone. For the remainder of the state outside of the CMZ, hunters are also encouraged to voluntarily drop off samples for testing at self-service freezer locations. Sampling locations throughout the state can be found at www.outdooralabama.com/cwd/cwd-zone-map.
All deer harvested by hunters on certain public land in the CMZ are required to be sampled throughout the season. Those public lands include the Freedom Hills, Lauderdale, and Seven-Mile Island wildlife management areas (WMAs); the Cherokee Physically Disabled Hunting Area; and the Riverton Community Hunting Area.
As an incentive to increase CWD samples submitted for testing on scheduled mandatory testing dates, hunters who harvest a deer from within the CMZ and submit their harvest for CWD testing are eligible to receive a CWD Sampling Permit from ADCNR to harvest one additional antlered deer from within the CMZ for each sample submitted. CWD Sampling Permits are only available at WMA check stations and ADCNR mobile sampling locations. No more than two additional CWD Sampling Permits will be issued per hunter above the season bag limit for the High-Risk and Buffer zones. CWD Sampling Permits are non-transferable.
Transporting deer carcasses out of the management zone can potentially spread CWD to currently unaffected areas. As a result, carcass restrictions are in place under the CWD regulation that prohibit the transport of harvested deer from the CMZ to areas outside the Buffer or High-Risk zones. Deer harvested within the High-Risk Zone must remain and be disposed of within the High-Risk Zone. Deer harvested within the Buffer Zone must remain and be disposed of within the CMZ. Deboned meat, cleaned skull plates, and raw hides with no visible brain or spinal cord tissue may be taken outside of these zones.
Hunting license and Game Check requirements apply to all white-tailed deer harvests statewide.
CWD is a contagious neurological disease of white-tailed deer and other deer species. It belongs to a group of diseases known as transmissible spongiform encephalopathies. The disease is caused by a mutated protein called a prion. It is always fatal for white-tailed deer. The first case of CWD in Alabama’s deer herd was detected in Lauderdale County in January 2022.
For more information about CWD in Alabama, visit www.outdooralabama.com/cwd-info.
ADCNR promotes wise stewardship, management and enjoyment of Alabama’s natural resources through four divisions: Marine Resources, State Lands, State Parks, and Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries. Learn more at www.outdooralabama.com.
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Alabama DNR
