** AWARDS ISSUED PRIOR TO JANUARY 20, 2025, WERE FUNDED UNDER PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATIONS AND MAY NOT REFLECT THE PRIORITIES AND POLICIES OF THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION.** THE CAPTIVE CERVID INDUSTRY IS A ROBUST AGRICULTURAL SECTOR WITH NEARLY 10,000 FOR-PROFIT DEER BREEDING OPERATIONS ACROSS NORTH AMERICA, WITH ESPECIALLY HIGH CONCENTRATIONS IN TEXAS. UNEXPECTEDLY, WHITE-TAILED DEER (ODOCOILEUS VIRGINIANUS) HAVE EMERGED AS A RESERVOIR FOR SARS-COV-2, THE AGENT OF COVID-19. SEVERAL STUDIES ACROSS THE US AND CANADA HAVE DOCUMENTED DEER TO BE INFECTED WITH MANY DIFFERENT LINEAGES OF THE VIRUS CIRCULATING IN HUMANS. IN FALL 2021, WE REPORTED THE FIRST FINDINGS OF INFECTION AMONG FARMED DEER, IN WHICH OVER 94% OF SAMPLED ANIMALS ON ONE FARM WERE POSITIVE. MANY QUESTIONS REMAIN ABOUT THE VIRAL TRANSMISSION NETWORKS AT DEER FARMS, WHICH MAY INCLUDE SPILLOVER FROM HUMANS OR OTHER ANIMALS AND THREATS OF ONWARD TRANSMISSION AMONGST OTHER ANIMALS. FURTHER, THE IMPACTS OF SARS-COV-2 INFECTIONS ON THE HEALTH OF AGRICULTURAL DEER IS LARGELY UNKNOWN. WE WILL BUILD ON OUR MULTIDISCIPLINARY TEAM'S EXPERIENCE STUDYING COVID-19 PANDEMIC TO UNDERSTAND THE THREAT THAT SARS-COV-2 POSES TO AGRICULTURAL BIOSECURITY SO THAT PLANS CAN BE MADE TO MITIGATE THE RISKS. USING THE LARGE DEER FARM NETWORK IN TEXAS, WE AIM TO QUANTIFY 1) THE FREQUENCY OF CAPTIVE CERVID INFECTION; 2) THE DEGREE OF HORIZONTAL TRANSMISSION AMONG CAPTIVE DEER AND SYMPATRIC LIVESTOCK, WILDLIFE, AND FARM WORKERS; 3) VIRAL GENOME VARIANTS AMONG DEER AND DIRECTIONALITY OF TRANSMISSION AND 4) THE CONSEQUENCE OF SARS-COV-2 INFECTION ON ANIMAL HEALTH. OUR ONGOING PARTNERSHIPS WITH DEER FARMS, ESTABLISHED CAPACITY FOR MOLECULAR AND SEROLOGICAL ASSAYS, AND INTEGRATED TEAM OF EPIDEMIOLOGISTS AND VETERINARIANS WILL FACILITATE THE PROJECT. THIS PROJECT WILL PROVIDE CRITICAL INFORMATION FOR MANAGEMENT DECISIONS FOR IMPROVING AGRICULTURAL BIOSECURITY AND PROTECTING ANIMAL HEALTH.