The Law of Diminishing Run-ins
by Jim Low
This is the time of year when the frequency of deer-vehicle accidents begins to creep up. I was looking at accident statistics awhile back and noticed some interesting trends.
Back in 1991, there was a deer-vehicle collision on average every 2.6 hours. Over the next few years, that figure dropped steadily, peaking at 1.7 hours per accident in 1999. Deer-car accidents were happening with greater frequency every year.
Around the middle of this period, the Conservation Department responded by increasing deer-hunting season length and making more antlerless deer permits available. Between 1991 and 2007, the overall firearms hunting season length doubled, going from 18 to 36 days. And where you could only get one antlerless deer tag in 1991, in 2007 hunters could buy as many antlerless permits as they want for use in 81 of Missouri’s 114 counties. The number of does shot by hunters each year mirrored this trend, jumping from around 60,000 to 106,000. When it comes to controlling deer numbers, it’s the doe harvest that counts.
Guess what else happened during this period. The rate of deer-vehicle collisions went from one every 1.7 hours back to one every 2.6 hours, back down to the 1991 rate.
If you are deer hunter, give yourself a pat on the back for helping keep Missouri drivers safe!
By the way, the main reason the rate of deer-vehicle collisions goes up in the fall is deer behavior. Does and bucks grow more active during “the rut,” as their mating season is known. You can’t do anything about that, but you can drive defensively, especially at dawn and dusk. Watch for deer just off the road, and slow down when you spot one. Don’t let down your guard if the deer gets across the road ahead of you. Another could be following.
Have you ever hit a deer? More than one? Any tips to help the rest of us avoid collisions?
September 14th, 2009 at 2:57 pm
There is an easy way to avoid deer accidents and it is right in front of you when you drive.
Honk your horn! Sound travels much faster than your car and deer react to it much faster. Light only confuses them. Sound does not confuse them and they immediately run away from it. In rural areas at night honk at likely crossings, like creeks, even if you don’t see a deer. They’re out there.
September 14th, 2009 at 5:51 pm
If you find yourself on an inevitable track to hit a deer, apply your brakes and DO NOT SWERVE. Swerving puts you and your passengers at greater risk for injury, especially with the wet/icy road condition that may be present during peak rut times when the deer would be most active. The deer you may hit will be much more forgiving and moveable than a vehicle in the opposite lane or that 50 year old oak tree just off of the road. And by slowing, you may give that deer the extra split-second it needs to jump out of the way.
September 15th, 2009 at 3:57 pm
I have deer warning whistles. They sit on the hood of the car. I’m sure they can be purchased in MO.
September 16th, 2009 at 12:04 pm
Dress in hunting attire pack everything but the kitchen sink. This seems to keep them away from me during hunting season!
September 16th, 2009 at 4:16 pm
Great comments. Thanks, especially for reminding us how difficult it is to see deer when you WANT to!
About the whistles for mounting on vehicles … a very thorough study of their effectiveness found they don’t work. They don’t hurt, either, except to waste a little of your hard-earned cash.
For more information about the studies, see:
http://www.bioacoustics.uconn.edu/reports/ARLOManuscript326%20FINAL.pdf
or
http://www.thecherrycreeknews.com/content/view/1678/104/
or
http://www.ehow.com/about_5090740_effectiveness-deer-whistles.html.
Jim
September 17th, 2009 at 11:59 am
I would agree with Drew, but where I hunt in Shannon County, the only place I see deer is near the road. When I go into the woods to hunt, they have left to visit Hwy’s 19 and 106.
September 21st, 2009 at 9:48 pm
Don’t honk at deer. They tend to run across the road after that…
September 27th, 2009 at 8:10 am
LIVING IN A AREA THAT HAS ALL Two LANE ROADS AND DRIVE 15 MILES TO TOWN KEEP TRACK were the DEER CROSS. AND GUST SLOW DOWN
September 30th, 2009 at 9:15 am
There’s a song about blue eye’s shinning in the rain but what has saved me from hitting deer at night is “blue eyes shinning in the night”. Even though the eyes are the smallest part of a deer their eyes shine bright blue when your headlight beam shines on them. So at dusk I look for the deer but after dark watch for 1 or 2 bright blue spots and slow down when you see them. And I get my wife involved with the spotting. Lots of times she is the one who spots the deer first. At first she wouldn’t see the deer, but after practice she got really good at it and it’s almost like a game of who can spot the deer first. We go past Bennet Springs on our way home from my daughters house and if it’s evening or night we both watch the sides of the road. Almost every time one of us spots a deer.
October 21st, 2009 at 10:06 am
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November 24th, 2009 at 10:43 am
i think one of the ways to avoid such accident is to obey the speed limit while driving. with this, we can reach our destination safely.