Just received this from our police department, via e-mail
"Fall is a season in which many species of wildlife have increased activity and movement. Most notably is New Jersey's white-tailed deer population. In the fall the white-tailed deer population is at its peak. Fall is the breeding season for white-tailed deer causing their travel habits to increase. This increase in activity frequently brings the deer closer to roadways and increases the likelihood of a deer-vehicle crash. Consequently, motorists need to be at a high state of alertness for deer crossing roadways.
MTPD offers the following information and tips to help avoid crashes with deer:
Always wear a seatbelt. If you are driving, always operate your vehicle at a sensible speed consistent with road and weather conditions.
Deer are most active at dawn and dusk but can cross roadways at any time. Motorists need to remain especially alert and drive with extreme caution.
Be aware of posted deer crossing signs. These signs are posted in active deer crossing areas.
If a deer is spotted, SLOW DOWN and remain alert for sudden movement. Note that deer usually move in herds and will usually cross roadways in single file. If you see one deer, be on the lookout for others following behind the first.
Deer are unpredictable. Deer may stop in the middle of the road or change direction at any time. The safest action is to slow down or stop and proceed only after the roadway is clear.
Use high beams when driving at night and there is no opposing traffic. The high beams will illuminate the eyes of deer on or near the roadway giving you more reaction time to slow down.
Do not rely solely on car-mounted deer whistles or other deer warning devices. Operating your vehicle cautiously and being aware of deer near the roadway is your best way of avoiding a collision."
Last night I saw 5 deers on the road while driving home at 9 PM in 5 different places. So far I haven't hit any, but I bet that is just a matter of time. We see them every day around here, and I bet PP hears them chewing every night in the garden (I am usually asleep). I never thought I would say this, but I really, really don't like deer. It is like ladybugs- they are nice, but when you get 1000 invasive japanese ladybugs inside your house looking for dark spots to overwinter, then you have had enough of them.
MTPD offers the following information and tips to help avoid crashes with deer:
Always wear a seatbelt. If you are driving, always operate your vehicle at a sensible speed consistent with road and weather conditions.
Deer are most active at dawn and dusk but can cross roadways at any time. Motorists need to remain especially alert and drive with extreme caution.
Be aware of posted deer crossing signs. These signs are posted in active deer crossing areas.
If a deer is spotted, SLOW DOWN and remain alert for sudden movement. Note that deer usually move in herds and will usually cross roadways in single file. If you see one deer, be on the lookout for others following behind the first.
Deer are unpredictable. Deer may stop in the middle of the road or change direction at any time. The safest action is to slow down or stop and proceed only after the roadway is clear.
Use high beams when driving at night and there is no opposing traffic. The high beams will illuminate the eyes of deer on or near the roadway giving you more reaction time to slow down.
Do not rely solely on car-mounted deer whistles or other deer warning devices. Operating your vehicle cautiously and being aware of deer near the roadway is your best way of avoiding a collision."
Last night I saw 5 deers on the road while driving home at 9 PM in 5 different places. So far I haven't hit any, but I bet that is just a matter of time. We see them every day around here, and I bet PP hears them chewing every night in the garden (I am usually asleep). I never thought I would say this, but I really, really don't like deer. It is like ladybugs- they are nice, but when you get 1000 invasive japanese ladybugs inside your house looking for dark spots to overwinter, then you have had enough of them.
11 comments:
Out in the field, near our house are currently about 10 turkey vultures having a snack on a dead deer. Natural recycling...
I would say, generally speaking, you should always be wary of any animal(s) the constabulary keeps tabs on.
As for ladybugs, thank your Swedish stars it wasn't 1000 white-tails looking for dark spots to overwinter in. That many ungulates could seriously damage the Feng Shui (to say nothing of hardwood floors).
Somehow this reminds me of a recent news story where sheep were kept in the basement of a pizzeria.
Add to LS comment...There were 3 sheeps in the pizzeria basement. Somebody had seen a forth led in to the establisment, but it had been "home-slaughtered". Very prohibited by law in Sweden. As one police commented in radio: "I would be surprised if they ever opened the pizza place again!"
So they made lamb pizza?
Lamb pizza...have you´ve ever checked what the ham on the pizza is? Sure it´s ham?
Well, we don't put ham on pizza in our house, but seriously, ham and lamb looks and taste totally different. Now, in Sweden, pizzerias put a million strange things on pizza (eggs, pineapple, bananas, curry, beef tenderloin, Bearnaise sauce - I am not making this up) so I bet some little lamb pieces could have made it onto the pizzas without any Swede noticing. But I think it is more likely the lamb was for the Sunday dinner of lamb curry or roast leg of lamb. We had lamb last night in fact, yum!!!
Ha! I know that LS has had a personal vendetta against deer for years. I wouldn't ask too many questions about the toppings on their pizzas. I'm sure it's all "natural recycling."
Hi Cindy!
Vendetta? I see it more as self-defense. From my part I mean. But you might be right, since potato cannons and other defense alternatives have been considered (but not yet been implemented).
You should see our garden - they eat even the deer proof plants. They leave the mint alone, and everything above 4 feet. And they don't like ferns. So a mint-fern garden, that is what we should have.
On the info-side " NatureWorks" http://www.nhptv.org/NATUREWORKS/whitetaileddeer.htm# you can read the following (quote).
Sometimes a bobcat or a coyote will kill a young deer, but people and dogs are now the deer's main predator.
So Cythia might be right....potato cannon....haha.
I think there are 20 000 crashes between cars and deer per year in New Jersey... so that would make the car the main predator... :)
If you kill an animal in Maine with your car you are responsible to take care of the body, even if it is a giant moose. But here in NJ you have to leave it and after a few days (and a lot of smell and rot), the township come and pick it up. I wonder what they do with all the carcasses. In the meantime the vultures and foxes and such have usually had a feast, of course.
Bobcats are really rare here, I have never seen one.
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