April 6, 2021 5:54 pm
New research has suggested growing populations of Sika deer may be linked to local outbreaks of bovine TB in cattle in the Republic of Ireland.
The study, which was conducted by researchers from Trinity College Dublin and the National Parks and Wildlife Service with support from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, could have major implications for controlling bovine TB.
Although bTB infection rates have decreased in general in recent decades, county-level data shows a correlation between higher Sika numbers and higher local TB infections – with County Wicklow a particular hotspot.
The research, which has been published in the journal