Northern drivers will need to keep their eyes peeled for a spike in deer sightings on our roads and highways.
On Saturday, Drive BC noted six deer were struck by different vehicles in a six-hour span in several locations across the province.
Nadia Xenakis is the Wildlife Specialist at the BC SPCA who says motorists will need to be aware of what animals are doing during the dawn and dusk hours.
“The season is high-risk for deer because it is their rutting season but it is also high-risk for a lot of other animals as well including owls and raptors (bird of prey). While the commuting times aren’t changing the scavenging and hunting times are because they change with the light each year. We want to be extra careful and that we are abiding by speed limit laws.”
Xenakis noted the increased interactions involving deer are mainly due to the rutting season.
“From mid-October to December is deer rutting season meaning bucks will act a bit more aggressively, they are competing for does and you will see them more frequently on the roadside and a little bit more during the day displaying aggressive behaviours with each other.”
“They might be a little more defensive and there are a lot of things working against deer right now.”
Drive BC noted there are roughly 5,700 reported collisions involving wildlife on the province’s highways each year – 75 percent involve deer.
Be👁️watchful👁️for #BCWildlife.
When you see a🦌deer, there are often more🦌deer slightly out of sight doing what 🦌🦌do.
The best defence against striking #BritishColumbia 🫎wildlife is to travel at the posted road speed.@BCHwyPatrol #BiggerThanYouThink
— DriveBC (@DriveBC) November 11, 2024
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