On the move now, deer can be a danger to motorists

The Kansas City Star ^ | November 12, 2015 | David Boyce

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

One day in the first week of November, Pete Pringle and his brother, Luke, were talking about car accidents involving deer.

Pete and Luke work at Pringle Auto Body, 2720 S. 34th St., Kansas City, Kan. It is a family business started by their grandfather in 1968 and now is run by their mother.

It was natural for them to have a conversation on deer accidents this time of year. It’s when a higher percentage of collisions involving deer occur because it’s the breeding season for deer.

“We are getting into that season,” Pete Pringle said.

Bucks and does will be on the move in the breeding season far more than other times of the year, said Bill Graham, media specialist for the Missouri Department of Conservation.

“Another thing is the habitat that deer have been staying in all summer is changing,” Graham said. “The leaves fall off the trees, some of the vegetation is dying so some of their old hiding places and hangouts are changing. They are looking for new places.

“Also, their food sources are changing. All of that contributes to deer being on the move more this time of year.”

In the same week the Pringle brothers were talking about deer accidents involving cars, a 2011 Hyundai Elantra arrived at their auto body shop on Nov. 4.

The car was on Interstate 70 when it and the deer collided, causing significant damage to the front end of the passenger side.

The estimate to fix the damage, Pete said, was $6,600.

“It is on the cusp of being a totaled,” Pete said. “The car is new enough. It is nothing for a deer to cause $5,000, $6,000, $7,000 worth of damage to a car . . .

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

Rats with hooves.

[cradle of freedom]

I have always wondered what do deer eat in the wintertime and how do they get shelter from the bad weather?

[Blue Jays]

In some suburban areas people feed them out of their hands.
There are way, way, way too many deer in the country
It is a health hazard in many counties throughout the nation.

[fwdude]

They eat a lot of acorns and other seed/nut crops throughout the winter. I have several oaks and I see them routinely on my property.

[diplomatic_immunity]

Hit one of these infernal animals in my new Sonata last week. I was down to 10 mph at point of impact and still $1500 in damages. They don’t make them like they used to...

[HangnJudge]

I hit one broadside on my motorcycle once at ~50MPH
I flipped, ate ~20Yds of asphalt, and broke bones
I almost cut it in two, I hit it so hard

I have some serious respect for what Deer can do now...

[Hieronymus]

Better to hit a deer than to hit a moose.

[cripplecreek]

Here in Michigan its hard to tell when they’re on the move because they’re always everywhere.

LOTs of nice deer being taken in my neck of the woods. (Lots of photos)

http://www.mlive.com/news/jackson/index.ssf/2014/10/michigan_bucks_monster_deer_on.html

[gattaca]

They’re searching for food since the corn has been harvested. I’ve been involved in several deer/auto collisions. Their hair gets stuck in the front grill of the car, hard to wash off. Sounds awful, but it took me months to clean it all out.

[cradle of freedom]

Thanks, there are lots of oak trees and lots of acorns. It makes me feel better that they have something to eat in the winter.

[cradle of freedom]

I have seen these little whistle like devices that can be placed on the hood of a car. I think the whistle noise is supposed to scare off the deer. Have you ever heard of these and do they really work.

[Stand Watch Listen]

Any given day I have 3 - 11 white tail deer/fawns traipsing through the yard. In the fall/winter have two ivy covered slopes on either side of the house and the deer bed down for the night. Last winter it was 10’ and saw 12 deer just bedded down in the snow, spaced about 5 feet apart (surprised they weren't huddled together).

As for eating, they have rooted up about 2,000 flowering bulbs, eaten hundreds of hostas, hundreds of Japanese forest grasses, used dozens of ceramic urns filled with begonias/vines as personal buffet servers, stripped off bark from many newly planted saplings. Any landscaped lush property is a smorgasbord for wintertime deer. This year was the worst.

We have the usual arguments in the area, hire bow hunters to cull the herds vs the anguished pleas to save 'Bambi".

[Autonomous User]

https://youtu.be/Z4kZ-pXe4aU

4 men 4 dead deer in a mini cooper

[cradle of freedom]

They really are gormands.

[RegulatorCountry]

I know people who swear by deer whistles on their cars and trucks but there’s really no scientific basis for them to work.

[angcat]

SLOW DOWN!

[niteowl77]

One of the antlered lunatics ran into the LF corner of my car one night last November, sliding across the hood, smacking his rack on the windshield and busting off the right outside mirror as he sailed off the car. Replacing the windshield and nearly every bit of the bodywork forward of the doors ended up running about six grand. Just last week, I witnessed another buck leap out into the path of an oncoming car and the damage done was remarkably similar to what I had experienced. In both cases, though, the deer remained outside of the passenger compartment, did not "roll under" the vehicle, and both vehicles were still drivable. The new cars may seem flimsy compared to a 1960's Chrysler Newport, but they have gotten the controlled collapse thing down pretty good.

Out here, the crop harvesting that is still going on stirs the deer up, and that doesn't help matters; with less cover to use, they can get pretty frantic trying to get to the next patch of timber or other sheltered place. During a hot air balloon ride(!), I witnessed for myself how far and hard a herd will run will run when they put their minds - such as they are - to it.

Mr. niteowl77

[Bratch]

[caww]

In my area the deer are so thick they wander in herds thru peoples properties and have adjusted to the suburbs. I sat on my sons deck and watched a herd walk right by me......they don’t seem to be nervous at all around people.

[ErnBatavia]

Years ago, visiting West Australia, our host wanted to get us back to our Perth Hotel (from a country place we'd visited) before dusk....because of the 'Roo danger.

Apparently, they're as much a hazard as deer.