[Could it be that there are too many people and not enough wolves or cougars?]
- By TIM REYNOLDS treynolds@crescent-news.com
- Jul 16, 2022 Updated 11 hrs ago
- 0
Increasingly whitetail deer, pictured here, are getting onto roadways and into crashes with motor vehicles.
- ODNR file photo
The number of motor vehicle crashes with deer has increased in the last year, raising questions about population and movement of deer in northwest Ohio. Here is a photo of a whitetail buck from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.
- ODNR File Photo
Dusk to dawn driving in the six-county area of northwest Ohio can be hazardous as seen by the number of accidents caused by an encounter with a deer or two.
Deer can be encountered alongside the road at any time during the day and in rural or urban areas, but prefer to move during dusk and dawn. According to Lt. Rustun Schack, commander at the Defiance Post of the Ohio State Highway Patrol, in the three counties of Williams, Defiance and Paulding alone, car-deer crashes are up.
“In Williams County from Jan. 1-July 12, 2021 compared to that same time this year, the number of crashes involving a deer went up from 148 to 188 in 2022,” said Schack. “For Defiance in that same time period, crashes went up from 160 to 193. Paulding County went up slightly from 95 to 99. One crash was a fatal — a man on a motorcycle in 2021 was on U.S. 24 when he struck a deer. He was then struck by another vehicle.”
A search on the Ohio Highway Patrol crash website revealed that Putnam, Fulton and Henry counties experienced a similar trend for that same time period with only Putnam County showing a decrease (2021 numbers in parentheses): Putnam, 63 (51); Fulton, 100 (90); Henry, 108 (90).
According to Clint McCoy of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Wildlife Division, Columbus, the increase in the whitetail deer population in the past few years may be a factor.
“The deer population is growing in Ohio,” said McCoy. “In almost every part of the state it continues to grow. We actually have increased bag limits for 18 counties — most of them in the western part of the state where we have set buck harvest records — in the upcoming hunting season. Because hunters are allowed to harvest only one buck each season, that is our primary index of the deer population. A larger harvest equals a larger population.”
In the last hunting season (2021), five of the six counties in northwest Ohio set records or were near setting records: Henry, Paulding and Putnam counties set harvest records, with Fulton and Williams counties not far off record harvests. Though it set a record in 2020, Defiance was the only county a bit down for the season due to an outbreak of epizootic hemorrhagic disease (EHD) — an insect borne disease that affects whitetail deer,but usually dissipates with colder weather.
McCoy also said that Defiance and Williams counties have larger populations of deer than surrounding counties.
“Defiance and Williams probably have in terms of absolute numbers of deer larger populations,” McCoy pointed out. “The reason is that the two counties and parts of Fulton have a fair bit more forest cover than other counties. Habitat diversity is a staple for prime deer habitat and that gives a larger deer population.”
Hunting is the major way of controlling the deer population, according the McCoy.
“While setting harvest records, it’s taking fewer hunters to do so,” he said. “Statewide there has been a 20% drop of hunters in the past decade or so. For the most part there are no natural predators of deer so hunting is the major way of controlling the population. Coyotes will take fawns and, in rare instances, an adult deer and bobcats in the eastern side of the state will take a deer. Other than that (there are) no natural predators.”
Neither Schack nor McCoy were able to comment definitively about reasons for car-deer crashes.
“I don’t know how much of an issue the vicinity of farms to roadways is an issue for deer-car crashes,” stated McCoy. “I have been in conversation with ODOT and law enforcement and looked at maps. One of the things that comes to the surface is where the habitat meets the roadway. If a roadway is in a corridor that wildlife use frequently there will be encounters. Loss of habitat by increasing tillable acreage does impact wild animals, but deer fair better than other animals.”
McCoy further commented about farm land and deer stating that soybean fields are prime food for “nursing moms and bucks growing antlers” because of the high protein available.
Schack offered some advice for drivers who encounter deer alongside the roadway.
“Be cautious, especially at dusk and dawn, when deer are most active,” he advised. “Maintain the speed limit and be aware that if you see one deer, there may be more.”
He also said that the reports they receive are not all of the crashes as a result of deer.
“There are unreported deer-car accidents because some insurance companies do not require a report to be filed,” he noted. “The crashes increase when deer are on the move and movement increases during the rut and during hunting seasons in the fall.”
Schack said that when a driver strikes a deer sometimes the deer is not killed and attempts are made to track down the injured animal.
“When we get a call for a vehicle that has struck a deer, we search the accident site for safety reasons,” he said. “If the deer has run off before we arrive we make sure the area is secure. If the deer is still in the area we may have to dispatch the animal. If the driver wants to claim the deer they can do so, but they have to get a receipt from the enforcement authority at the crash site.”
He also said that an injured animal can be dangerous and should not be approached.
“If you strike a deer don’t approach it, they can injure you,” he cautioned. “Wait for the authorities to arrive and they will deal with it.”
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