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Deer at two national parks in Maryland tested positive for a highly contagious and fatal brain disease known as "zombie deer disease," the first such cases detected at national parks in the state, officials said Tuesday.

Two deer tested positive for chronic wasting disease (CWD) at Antietam and Monocacy national battlefields during recent operations to reduce the white-tailed deer population to protect and restore native plants and preserve historic landscapes, the National Parks Service said.

CWD is a prion disease that can cause weight loss, stumbling, listlessness and neurological symptoms, according to the CDC. It has been spotted in deer, elk, reindeer and moose in areas of the U.S., Canada, Norway and South Korea. Symptoms can take up to a year to develop.

While these two cases mark the first CWD-positive detections at national parks in Maryland, officials said the disease has been present in the state since 2010.