Thursday, October 18, 2012

Why did the Deer Cross the Road?

How important are wildlife bridges? Yes, they do apparently exist in The Netherlands, as pictured below, but do they really limit auto vs deer collisions? And are they worth spending a vast amount of money to construct?

The Netherlands

Could the same thing be achieved by simply moving deer crossing signs?



Politicians weigh in on the argument.



Canada has wildlife bridges as well (right) but how many wildlife bridges does one stretch of highway need in order to be effective? I live in Southern California and yes, there is a wildlife underpass in the area where I live (under State Route 91 at Coal Canyon). However, I've never see deer road kill on that highway. That may be because traffic is so congested and the cars are moving so very slowly that deer would be able to simply navigate their way by walking slowly between cars. I've never seen a deer do that but an absence of proof isn't proof of absence...

6 comments:

WoFat said...

They're out there. And they VOTE!

darlin said...

How hard can it be to just move those signs... seriously now. I'm with WoFat, just do your civic duty and vote!

BTW the bridges I've passed by near Jasper do indeed work. I was shocked when I saw the deer strolling across the bridge, above the traffic and safely got to the other side. Smart deer these Canadian deer are I tell ya!

Az said...

I feel afraid for the deer (just thinking about it) but those bridges are pretty!

Opus #6 said...

Oh deer. Oh deerie me.

Anonymous said...

I was driving up to Tahoe one evening and a very large brown bear came trotting out of the woods. He was jumping the jersey barrier when he realized it wasn't going to end well so he quickly changed course and went back into the woods...very surreal. I guess bears are smart enough not to need bridges!

Anonymous said...

There's one in the UK too - and it works! Scotney Castle Land Bridge.

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