Fall is officially here and with cooler temperatures and shorter days, more deer are crossing busy roads and causing car accidents.
“This time of year, the potential is just so high,” said Jay Armbrister, the sheriff for Douglas County in Kansas. “And one wreck can alter numerous lives, especially if you're not prepared, or not ready, or if you're just flat not paying attention.”
Although car collisions with deer can occur throughout the year, Armbrister said his office is already seeing increased reports of deer strikes.
The reason? It’s the start of breeding season, also known as the “rut,” which means that male deer, including white-tail and mule, are on a quest to find mates.
“It's like a bell or a notification for the deer to start getting their reproduction going,” said Christopher Cain, an urban wildlife biologist with the Missouri Department of Conservation.
The deer will search at length for their mates. As a result, many try to cross busy roads.
“The males are always chasing after the females or does. And they don't always recognize that — that's a road, not a gray patch of grass,” said Cain.
Sheriff Armbrister said the deer behavior also changes during the rut. Many young bucks act more dominant and are willing to go places they’re unfamiliar with. Some will even stand in the middle of the road when they would normally run from oncoming traffic, he said.
“They're just crazy during this time of year,” Armbrister said. “So you can't really rule out what you're going to see with the behavior during the rut.”
In 2023, Missouri drivers experienced more than 3,000 crashes involving a deer. Of those collisions, there were more than 400 injuries and four fatalities, according to the Missouri Department of Transportation.
“One deer strike occurred approximately every 2 hours and 30 minutes in the state,” said Melissa Black, a spokesperson for MODOT.
In 2022, 37% of all Kansas single-vehicle crashes involved a collision with a deer. That year, 575 people were injured and six were killed, according to the Kansas Department of Transportation. Although it may be difficult, officials have said in previous years that a driver is often safer making contact with the deer rather than trying to avoid it.
“If a deer enters the roadway in front of your car, it is best to hit the animal and not swerve to avoid it,” Kansas Highway Patrol captain Candice Breshears said last year. “We find more serious crashes occur when you swerve to miss the deer, potentially losing control of your vehicle, leaving the road or veering into oncoming traffic.”
To help avoid collisions with the deer, however, Armbrister recommends that drivers slow down, use their headlights, and stay alert — especially in the darker hours of dusk and dawn when deer are most active.
