Avoiding the big and small

The Hearld Sun recently posted an article about two baby wombats that were rescued after their mothers were hit by vehicles.
It was great to read that the animals were now in a place where people were offering them the care they needed. What the article did not elaborate on was the number of animals killed by motor vehicle accidents or how to prevent this from happening.
Personally, the thought of hitting an animal sounds traumatic. To date, no animals, large or small have met the bumper or wheels of my little vehicle.
According to the Wildlife Collision Prevention Program, there are 4-8 large animal vehicle collisions every hour in Canada.
You do not need stats to see that animals’ being hit by vehicles is a problem. Take a look out your window next time you’re driving down the highway. You will probably see a few raccoons, maybe an opossum, sometimes a fox or even a deer. The numbers increase as you move into the country.
No normal person wants to hit an animal when they are driving but swerving or slamming on the breaks is not always an option.
So what can a driver do to prevent such an unfortunate meeting?
After doing some research it’s become apparent that deer whistles are not the way to go. Numerous reports stated they are ineffective for a variety of different reasons. These reasons stated everything from the whistles not being loud enough to the whistles not being effective at any sound level.
The tips that were consistant were simple, but still cannot guarantee that you will have a road kill free driving record.
The tips included things like:
Driving with your high beams on when possible
Minimize night driving when possible
Drive the speed limit
If you see a deer slow down. Deer travel in groups and it’s likely there will be more.
If a bird is flying at your car do not stop. The bird will likely use the air lift from your car to avoid hitting you
If you see a ball, Frisbee, enter the road look for animals as well as children
If you see bumps in the road consider that it may be an animal like an armadillo, opossum or turtle
There were many different tips for avoiding animals but almost all of the sites encouraged drivers NOT to swerve or slam on the breaks. Ultimately, this could potentially more damage to you or any vehicles around you.
And if you do see road kill it’s good to inform animal services or get them to direct you to someone who deals with these issues. Road kill can attract other animals that eat carrion causing more animals to be on the road.