Data from 548 reported accidents involving white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) and vehicles in Lynchburg during the years 1987-1991 were summarized. A majority (54.4%) occurred in the months October, November and December with 25.9% occurring in November. While accidents occurred at all hours, most (50%) occurred between 1700 and 0100 hrs.; about 12% occurred between 0600 and 0900 hrs. Accidents occurred on all days of the week (range 12.8% to 17.0%) and were not higher on work days. Adverse weather did not seem to he a factor increasing collisions; 80% of collisions occurred in clear weather. Most (75%) accidents occurred in dark conditions; 50% occurred on lighted highways. Accidents resulted in 9 human injuries and 1 human fatality

Rexroad, Ralph W.

Scanlon, Patrick F.

Wilmoth, William F.

English

DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska

University of Nebraska - Lincoln DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln 6 - Sixth Eastern Wildlife Damage Control Conference (1993) Eastern Wildlife Damage Control Conferences October 1993 A SUMMARY OF REPORTED DEER-RELATED VEHICLE ACCIDENTS IN A VIRGINIA CITY Patrick F. Scanlon Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University William F. Wilmoth Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Ralph W. Rexroad Lynchburg Police Department, Lynchburg, VA Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/ewdcc6  Part of the Environmental Health and Protection Commons Scanlon, Patrick F.; Wilmoth, William F.; and Rexroad, Ralph W., "A SUMMARY OF REPORTED DEER-RELATED VEHICLE ACCIDENTS IN A VIRGINIA CITY" (1993). 6 - Sixth Eastern Wildlife Damage Control Conference (1993). 30. https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/ewdcc6/30 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Eastern Wildlife Damage Control Conferences at DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. It has been accepted for inclusion in 6 - Sixth Eastern Wildlife Damage Control Conference (1993) by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. A SUMMARY OF REPORTED DEER-RELATED VEHICLE ACCIDENTS IN A VIRGINIA CITYPATRICK F. SCANLON, Department of Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University,Blacksburg, VA 24061-0321WILLIAM F. WILMOTH, Department of Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University,Blacksburg, VA 24061-0321RALPH W. REXROAD, Commander, Lynchburg Police Department, 905 Court Street, Lynchburg, VA 24501ABSTRACT: Data from 548 reported accidents involving white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) and vehicles in Lynchburgduring the years 1987-1991 were summarized. A majority (54.4%) occurred in the months October, November and December with25.9% occurring in November. While accidents occurred at all hours, most (50%) occurred between 1700 and 0100 hrs.; about 12%occurred between 0600 and 0900 hrs. Accidents occurred on all days of the week (range 12.8% to 17.0%) and were not higher onwork days. Adverse weather did not seem to he a factor increasing collisions; 80% of collisions occurred in clear weather. Most(75%) accidents occurred in dark conditions; 50% occurred on lighted highways. Accidents resulted in 9 human injuries and 1human fatality.Proc. East. Wildl. Damage Control Conf. 6:166-170. 1995.Deer-vehicle accidents have been long recognized as asource of deer mortality as well as of property damage (Bellisand Graves 1971, Reilly and Green 1974, Allen andMcCullough 1976, Bashore et al. 1985). Most previous studieshave been concerned with vehicle accidents involving deer ofseveral species in rural conditions and on rural highways.White-tailed deer have become a severe and frustratingproblem in urban and suburban areas of the east. Part of theproblem has involved collisions between deer and vehicles.Analysis of patterns of these collisions would provide datafor educating the motoring public on means to avoid accidentswith deer. Instructions given to motorists in states’ drivershandbooks seem inadequate in this regard (Scanlon and Muth1979).This report presents data on seasonal and daily patternsof deer-vehicle accidents occurring in Lynchburg, Virginia,during the interval 1987 to 1991. The lighting and weatherconditions prevailing at the times of these accidents were alsoconsidered.We thank the city of Lynchburg police officers for theirdiligent efforts and Mrs. Donna Stanek for her interest insolving deer-related problems in Lynchburg.METHODSLynchburg, Virginia, is located in the Piedmont region ofVirginia. It is a city of approximately 70,000 residents withan area of 130 km2 (50 mi2). Approximately one-third of thearea is wooded though much of the wooded area is nowresidential subdivisions. Some properties within the city limitsare farms. Deer population size, though undocumented, seemshigh within the city and the city adjoins counties withburgeoning deer populations. Limited hunting of deer isconducted on the farms within the city and some deer havebeen removed to control crop damage.The city of Lynchburg police officers prepared standardaccident reports on collisions involving deer. Not all deeraccidents were reported as indicated by dead deer being foundon roads while the relevant collisions were not reported. Thestandard information recorded include date, time of day,weather and lighting conditions, human injuries, and anestimate of property damage. These data were compiled forthe years 1987 through 1991. Patterns in the data weredetermined by simple percentage analyses. More formalanalyses were not deemed appropriate as appropriate data ontraffic patterns were not available.RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONA total of 548 deer-related vehicle accidents were reportedin the 5-year period. Most accidents (94%) involved collisionswith deer. Only 33 (6%) of accidents results from avoidingdeer. The accidents resulted in 9 human injuries in 8 accidents(Table 1).Table 1. Human injuries and property damage resulting from deer vehicle accidents in Lynchburg, VA. 1987-1991.1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 AllTotal 105 91 94 124 134 548Human injuries 1 0 3 2 3 9Human fatalities 1 0 0 0 0 1There was one fatality.Time of year had a major effect on frequency of deer-vehicle accidents (Table 2). October, November and Decemberwere the months of peak accident numbers with Novemberhaving 26% of all accidents. Several factors probably combineto produce this pattern including deer behavior prior to, during,and after the rut, light conditions, and the fact that trafficpatterns associated with commuting to work coincide withdarkness.Table 2. Monthly distribution of deer-vehicle accidents in Lynchburg, VA 1987-1991.1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 All %J 2 6 14 8 5 35 6.39F 7 4 4 6 5 26 4.75M 10 8 6 6 6 36 6.57A 6 3 6 3 4 22 4.01M 4 5 6 8 4 27 4.93J 1 4 6 3 9 23 4.20J 3 5 2 7 8 25 4.56A 8 4 3 3 7 25 4.56S 2 8 5 10 6 31 5.66O 15 13 15 16 17 76 13.87N 29 20 21 37 35 142 25.91D 18 11 6 17 28 80 14.60Total 105 91 94 124 548Most of the accidents occurred between 1700 and 0100hors. (Table 3). Rather few accidents occurred during thedaytime or in the early morning hours when presumably trafficwas light. Only a relatively low percent of accidents (12.1%)occurred between 0600 and 0900 when most people drive towork.Table 3. Time of day when deer vehicle accidents occurred in Lynchburg, VA, 1987-1991Hour 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 All %<1a.m. 3 5 0 7 13 28 5.11-2 6 3 4 4 6 23 4.22-3 4 4 4 3 1 16 2.93-4 5 3 2 3 4 17 3.14-5 3 3 4 4 3 17 3.15-6 3 4 4 1 6 18 3.36-7 6 8 4 5 8 31 5.77-8 5 5 1 6 4 21 3.88-9 1 4 2 3 4 14 2.69-10 3 2 2 1 2 10 1.810-11 1 1 2 1 3 8 1.511-12 1 2 1 0 2 6 1.112-1 p.m. 0 2 3 0 3 8 1.51-2 2 0 0 0 2 4 0.72-3 0 5 1 2 4 12 2.23-4 0 1 0 0 1 2 0.44-5 2 0 2 3 1 8 1.55-6 10 5 7 10 8 40 7.36-7 11 8 8 15 10 52 9.57-8 8 6 11 9 14 48 8.88-9 9 6 8 14 13 50 9.19-10 7 7 6 10 9 39 7.110-12 6 3 9 15 5 38 6.911-12 9 4 9 8 8 38 6.9All 548 100.0Light conditions vary with time of day throughout the yearand may influence the diurnal pattern of accidents. Accidentswere relatively evenly distributed across days of the week(Table 4). The patterns of accidents seem less associated withtravel to and from work than with traffic during evening hours.Table 4. Deer-vehicle accidents by day of week in Lynchburg, VA, 1987-1991.Day 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 All %Su 11 7 17 19 16 70 12.8Mo 15 15 24 18 12 84 15.3Tu 12 14 13 16 16 71 13.0We 17 14 9 13 22 75 13.7Th 20 15 10 23 25 93 17.0Fr 15 11 10 13 23 72 13.1Sa 15 15 11 22 20 83 15.1All 105 91 94 124 134 548 100.0Light conditions were important factors in deer-vehiclecollisions (Table 5). Most (75%) accidents took place indarkness and 50% of the total were on lighted highways.Relatively few deer-vehicle accidents took place in dawn anddusk conditions (total of 6.1%) despite the coincidence ofdawn and dusk with times of commuting to and from workduring months with most accidents.Table 5. Deer-vehicle accidents in relation to lighting conditions in Lynchburg, VA 1987-1991.Lighting Conditions 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 All %Dawn 4 2 4 4 4 18 3.3Daylight 12 29 16 19 30 106 19.3Dusk 4 1 5 1 3 14 2.6Dark/Highway Lighted 58 45 48 56 67 274 50.0Dark/Highway Unlighted 27 14 21 44 30 136 24.8All 105 91 94 124 134 548 100.0Little effect of weather conditions on the pattern of deeraccidents was noted (Table 6) as most took place in clearweather conditions. However, this may reflect a propensity ofdeer to move during good weather conditions.Table 6. Deer-vehicle accidents in relation to weather conditions in Lynchburg, VA 1987-1992.Weather Conditions 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 All %Clear 84 75 72 100 106 437 79.8Cloudy 11 12 12 16 17 68 12.4Fog 0 1 2 0 1 4 0.7Mist/rain 9 3 7 8 9 36 6.6Snow/sleet 1 0 1 0 0 2 0.4Other 0 0 0 0 1 1 0.2All 548CONCLUSIONSMost deer-vehicle collisions occur under conditions ofdarkness and the majority occur in the months October throughDecember. Advice to motorists on avoiding collisions withdeer could be focused on these main patterns. Further, thereare major implications for design of tests to evaluate devicesdesigned to keep deer off roadways such as the work of Schaferand Penland (1985). Such evaluations should allow fordifferences in diurnal and seasonal behaviors of deer. Howlighting conditions coincide with traffic patterns should beconsidered in designs. In particular, substantial changes inseasonal patterns of accidents dictate that the length of timetreatments are applied should be short.LITERATURE CITEDAllen,R. E. and D. R. McCullough. 1976. Deer-car accidentsin southern Michigan. J. Wildl. Manage. 40:317-325.Bashore, T. L., W. M. Tzilkowski, and E. D. Bellis. 1985.Analysis of deer-vehicle collision sites in Pennsylvania.J. Wildl. Manage. 49:769-774.Bellis, E. D. and H. B. Graves. 1971. Deer mortality on aPennsylvania interstate highway. J. Wildl. Manage.35:232-237.Reilly, R. E. and H. E. Green. 1974. Deer mortality on aMichigan interstate highway. J. Wildl. Manage. 38:16-19.Scanlon, P. F. and S. M. Muth. 1979. Approaches by states toeducating drivers about wildlife hazards on roads. Proc.Annu. Conf. Southeast. Assoc. Fish Wild]. Agencies33:765-766.Schafer,J. A. and S. T. Penland. 1985. Effectiveness ofswareflex reflectors in reducing deer-vehicle accidents.J. Wildl. Manage. 49:774-776.

A SUMMARY OF REPORTED DEER-RELATED VEHICLE ACCIDENTS IN A VIRGINIA CITY

Data from 548 reported accidents involving white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) and vehicles in Lynchburg during the years 1987-1991 were summarized. A majority (54.4%) occurred in the months October, November and December with 25.9% occurring in November. While accidents occurred at all hours, most (50%) occurred between 1700 and 0100 hrs.; about 12% occurred between 0600 and 0900 hrs. Accidents occurred on all days of the week (range 12.8% to 17.0%) and were not higher on work days. Adverse weather did not seem to be a factor increasing collisions; 80% of collisions occurred in clear weather. Most (75%) accidents occurred in dark conditions; 50% occurred on lighted highways. Accidents resulted in 9 human injuries and 1 human fatality

DigitalCommons@USU

A SUMMARY OF REPORTED DEER-RELATED VEHICLE ACCIDENTS IN A VIRGINIA CITY PATRICK F. SCANLON, Department of Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061-0321 WILLIAM F. WILMOTH, Department of Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences , Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061-0321 RALPH W . REXROAD, Commander, Lynchburg Police Department, 905 Court Street , Lynchburg, VA 24504 ABSTRACT : Data from 548 reported accidents involving white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) and vehicles in Lynchburg during the years 1987-1991 were summarized. A majority (54.4%) occurred in the months October, November and December with 25.9% occurring in November. While accidents occurred at all hours, most (50%) occurred between 1700 and O 100 hrs. ; about 12 % occurred between 0600 and 0900 hrs . Accidents occurred on all days of the week (range 12.8% to 17.0%) and were not higher on work days. Adverse weather did not seem to be a factor increasing collisions; 80% of collisions occurred in clear weather . Most (75%) accidents occurred in dark conditions; 50% occurred on lighted highways. Accidents resulted in 9 human injuries and 1 human fatality. Deer-vehicle accidents have been long recognized as a source of deer mortality as well as of property damage (Bellis and Graves 1971, Reilly and Green 1974, Allen and McCullough 1976, Bashore et al. 1985). Most previous studies have been concerned with vehicle accidents involving deer of several species in rural conditions and on rural highways. White-tailed deer have become a severe and frustrating problem in urban and suburban areas of the east. Part of the problem has involved collisions between deer and vehicles. Analysis of patterns of these collisions would provide data for educating the motoring public on means to avoid accidents with deer . Instructions given to motorists in states' drivers handbooks seem inadequate in this regard (Scanlon and Muth 1979). This report presents data on seasonal and daily patterns of deer-vehicle accidents occurring in Lynchburg, Virginia, during the interval 1987 to 1991. The lighting and weather conditions prevailing at the times of these accidents were also considered . We thank the city of Lynchburg police officers for their diligent efforts and Mrs. Donna Stanek for her interest in solving deer-related problems in Lynchburg. :METHODS Lynchburg, Virginia, is located in the Piedmont region of Virginia. It is a city of approximately Proc . East. Wild!. Damage Control Conf. 6: 166-170. 1995. 166 70,000 residents with an area of 130 km 2 (50 mi2). Approximately one-third of the area is wooded though much of the wooded area is now residential subdivisions. Some properties within the city limits are farms. Deer population size, though undocumented, seems high within the city and the city adjoins counties with burgeoning deer populations. Limited hunting of deer is conducted on the farms within the city and some deer have been removed to control crop damage. The city of Lynchburg police officers prepared standard accident reports on collisions involving deer. Not all deer accidents were reported as indicated by dead deer being found on roads while the relevant collisions were not reported. The standard information recorded include date , time of day, weather and lighting conditions, human injuries, and an estimate of property damage. These data were compiled for the years 1987 through l 991. Patterns in the data were determined by simple percentage analyses. More formal analyses were not deemed appropriate as appropriate data on traffic patterns were not available. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION A total of 548 deer-related vehicle accidents were reported in the 5-year period. Most accidents (94 % ) involved collisions with deer. Only 33 (6%) of accidents results from avoiding deer. The accidents resulted in 9 human injuries in 8 accidents (Table 1). Table 1. Human injuries and property damage resulting from deer vehicle accidents in !Jynchburg, VA . 1987-1991. 1987 1988 Total 105 91 Human injuries 1 Human fatalities 1 There was one fatality . Time of year had a major effect on frequency of deer-vehicle accidents (Table 2) . October , November and December were the months of peak accident 0 0 1989 1990 1991 All 94 124 134 548 3 2 3 9 0 0 0 1 numbers with November having 26% of all accidents . Several factors probably combine to produce this pattern including deer behavior prior to, during, and after the rut, light conditions , and the fact that traffic patterns associated with commuting to work coincide with darkness. Table 2. Monthly districution of deer-vehicle accidents in Lynchburg , VA 1987-1991. 1987 1988 1989 J 2 6 14 F 7 4 4 M 10 8 6 A 6 3 6 M 4 5 6 J 1 4 6 J 3 5 2 A 8 4 3 s 2 8 5 0 15 13 15 N 29 20 21 D 18 11 6 Total 105 91 94 Most of the accidents occurred between 1700 and 0100 hrs. (Table 3). Rather few accidents occurred during the daytime or in the early morning hours when 167 1990 1991 All % 8 5 35 6.39 6 5 26 4 .75 6 6 36 6.57 3 4 22 4.01 8 4 27 4 .93 3 9 23 4.20 7 8 25 4 .56 3 7 25 4 .56 10 6 31 5 .66 16 17 76 13.87 37 35 142 25.91 17 28 80 14.60 124 134 548 presumably traffic was light. Only a relatively low percentage of accidents (12.1 %) occurred between 0600 and 0900 when most people drive to work. Table 3. Time of day when deer vehicle accidents occurred in Lynchburg, VA, 1987-1991 Hour 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 All % <l a.m. 3 5 0 7 13 28 5.1 1-2 6 3 4 4 6 23 4.2 2-3 4 4 4 3 16 2 .9 3-4 5 3 2 3 4 17 3.1 4-5 3 3 4 4 3 17 3.1 5-6 3 4 4 1 6 18 3.3 6-7 6 8 4 5 8 31 5.7 7-8 5 5 1 6 4 21 3.8 8-9 1 4 2 3 4 14 2.6 9-10 3 2 2 1 2 10 1.8 10-11 1 1 2 1 3 8 1.5 11-12 1 2 0 2 6 I.I 12-1 p.m . 0 2 3 0 3 8 1.5 1-2 2 0 0 0 2 4 0.7 2-3 0 5 2 4 12 2.2 3-4 0 0 0 2 0.4 4-5 2 0 2 3 1 8 1.5 5-6 IO 5 7 10 8 40 7.3 6-7 11 8 8 15 IO 52 9.5 7-8 8 6 11 9 14 48 8.8 8-9 9 6 8 14 13 50 9.1 9-10 7 7 6 10 9 39 7.1 10-12 6 3 9 15 5 38 6.9 11-12 9 4 9 8 8 38 6.9 All 548 100 Light conditions vary with time of day throughout the accidents seem less associated with travel to and from year and may influence the diurnal pattern of work than with traffic during evening hours. accidents. Accidents were relatively evenly distributed across days of the week (Table 4). The patterns of 168 Table 4 . Deer -vehicle accidents by day of week in Lynchburg, VA, 1987-1991. Day 1987 1988 1989 Su 11 7 17 Mo 15 15 24 Tu 12 14 13 We 17 14 9 Th 20 15 10 Fr 15 11 10 Sa 15 15 11 All 105 91 94 Light conditions were important factors in deer-vehicle collisions (Table 5). Most (75 % ) accidents took place in darkness and 50% of the total were on lighted highways. Relatively few deer-vehicle accidents 1990 1991 All % 19 16 70 12.8 18 12 84 15.3 16 16 71 13.0 13 22 75 13.7 23 25 93 17.0 13 23 72 13.1 22 20 83 15.1 124 134 548 100 took place in dawn and dusk conditions (total of 6.1 % ) despite the coincidence of dawn and dusk with times of commuting to and from work during months with most accidents. Table 5. Deer-vehicle accidents in relation to lighting conditions in Lynchburg, VA 1987-1991. Lighting Conditions 1987 1988 Dawn 4 2 Daylight 12 29 Dusk 4 1 Dark/Highway Lighted 58 45 Dark/Highway Unlighted 27 14 All 105 91 Little effect of weather conditions on the pattern of deer accidents was noted (Table 6) as most took place 169 1989 1990 1991 All % 4 4 4 18 3.3 16 19 30 106 19.3 5 1 3 14 2.6 48 56 67 274 50.0 21 44 30 136 24.8 94 124 134 548 100 in clear weather conditions . However, this may reflect a propensity of deer to move during good weather conditions . Table 6. Deer-vehicle accidents in relation to weather conditions in Lynchburg , VA 1987-1992 . Weather 1987 1988 1989 Condition Clear 84 75 Cloudy 11 12 Fog 0 1 Mist/rain 9 3 Snow/sleet 1 0 Other 0 0 All CONCLUSIONS Most deer-vehicle collisions occur under conditions of darkness and the majority occur in the months October through December. Advice to motorists on avoiding collisions with deer could be focused on these main patterns. Further, there are major implications for design of tests to evaluate devices designed to keep deer off roadways such as the work of Schafer and Penland (1985). Such evaluations should allow for differences in diurnal and seasonal behaviors of deer . How lighting conditions coincide with traffic patterns should be considered in designs. In particular , substantial changes in seasonal patterns of accidents dictate that the length of time treatment s are applied should be short . LITERATURE CITED Allen , R. E. and D . R. McCullough . 1976. Deer-car accidents in southern Michigan . J . Wild!. Manage . 40 :317-325 . 72 12 2 7 1 0 170 1990 1991 All % 100 106 437 79.8 16 17 68 12.4 0 1 4 0.7 8 9 36 6.6 0 0 2 0.4 0 1 1 0.2 548 Bashore, T . L., W . M . Tzilkowski , and E . D. Bellis . 1985. Analysis of deer-vehicle collision sites in Pennsylvania . J. Wild!. Manage . 49:769- 774. Bellis , E. D . and H. B. Graves. 1971. Deer mortality on a Pennsylvania interstate highway. J. Wild!. Manage . 35:232-237 . Reilly , R. E. and H . E . Green . 1974. Deer mortality on a Michigan interstate highway . J. Wild!. Manage . 38:16 -19. Scanlon , P. F. and S. M . \ttuth . 1979. Approaches by states to educating drivers about wildlife hazards on roads. Pro c. Annu . Conf. Southeast. Assoc . Fish Wild!. Agencie s 33:765 -766 . Schafer , J . A. and S. T . Penland. 1985. Effectiveness of swareflex reflectors in reducing deer-vehicle accidents . J . Wildl. Manage . 49 :774-776. 

A Summary of Reported Deer-Related Vehicle Accidents in a Virginia City

UNL | Libraries

University of Nebraska - Lincoln 
DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln 
6 - Sixth Eastern Wildlife Damage Control 
Conference (1993) Eastern Wildlife Damage Control Conferences 
October 1993 
A SUMMARY OF REPORTED DEER-RELATED VEHICLE ACCIDENTS 
IN A VIRGINIA CITY 
Patrick F. Scanlon 
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University 
William F. Wilmoth 
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University 
Ralph W. Rexroad 
Lynchburg Police Department, Lynchburg, VA 
Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/ewdcc6 
 Part of the Environmental Health and Protection Commons 
Scanlon, Patrick F.; Wilmoth, William F.; and Rexroad, Ralph W., "A SUMMARY OF REPORTED DEER-
RELATED VEHICLE ACCIDENTS IN A VIRGINIA CITY" (1993). 6 - Sixth Eastern Wildlife Damage Control 
Conference (1993). 30. 
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/ewdcc6/30 
This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Eastern Wildlife Damage Control Conferences at 
DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. It has been accepted for inclusion in 6 - Sixth Eastern Wildlife 
Damage Control Conference (1993) by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - 
Lincoln. 
A SUMMARY OF REPORTED DEER-RELATED VEHICLE ACCIDENTS IN A VIRGINIA CITY
PATRICK F. SCANLON, Department of Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University,
Blacksburg, VA 24061-0321
WILLIAM F. WILMOTH, Department of Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University,
Blacksburg, VA 24061-0321
RALPH W. REXROAD, Commander, Lynchburg Police Department, 905 Court Street, Lynchburg, VA 24501
ABSTRACT: Data from 548 reported accidents involving white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) and vehicles in Lynchburg
during the years 1987-1991 were summarized. A majority (54.4%) occurred in the months October, November and December with
25.9% occurring in November. While accidents occurred at all hours, most (50%) occurred between 1700 and 0100 hrs.; about 12%
occurred between 0600 and 0900 hrs. Accidents occurred on all days of the week (range 12.8% to 17.0%) and were not higher on
work days. Adverse weather did not seem to he a factor increasing collisions; 80% of collisions occurred in clear weather. Most
(75%) accidents occurred in dark conditions; 50% occurred on lighted highways. Accidents resulted in 9 human injuries and 1
human fatality.
Proc. East. Wildl. Damage Control Conf. 6:166-170. 1995.
Deer-vehicle accidents have been long recognized as a
source of deer mortality as well as of property damage (Bellis
and Graves 1971, Reilly and Green 1974, Allen and
McCullough 1976, Bashore et al. 1985). Most previous studies
have been concerned with vehicle accidents involving deer of
several species in rural conditions and on rural highways.
White-tailed deer have become a severe and frustrating
problem in urban and suburban areas of the east. Part of the
problem has involved collisions between deer and vehicles.
Analysis of patterns of these collisions would provide data
for educating the motoring public on means to avoid accidents
with deer. Instructions given to motorists in states’ drivers
handbooks seem inadequate in this regard (Scanlon and Muth
1979).
This report presents data on seasonal and daily patterns
of deer-vehicle accidents occurring in Lynchburg, Virginia,
during the interval 1987 to 1991. The lighting and weather
conditions prevailing at the times of these accidents were also
considered.
We thank the city of Lynchburg police officers for their
diligent efforts and Mrs. Donna Stanek for her interest in
solving deer-related problems in Lynchburg.
METHODS
Lynchburg, Virginia, is located in the Piedmont region of
Virginia. It is a city of approximately 70,000 residents with
an area of 130 km2 (50 mi2). Approximately one-third of the
area is wooded though much of the wooded area is now
residential subdivisions. Some properties within the city limits
are farms. Deer population size, though undocumented, seems
high within the city and the city adjoins counties with
burgeoning deer populations. Limited hunting of deer is
conducted on the farms within the city and some deer have
been removed to control crop damage.
The city of Lynchburg police officers prepared standard
accident reports on collisions involving deer. Not all deer
accidents were reported as indicated by dead deer being found
on roads while the relevant collisions were not reported. The
standard information recorded include date, time of day,
weather and lighting conditions, human injuries, and an
estimate of property damage. These data were compiled for
the years 1987 through 1991. Patterns in the data were
determined by simple percentage analyses. More formal
analyses were not deemed appropriate as appropriate data on
traffic patterns were not available.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
A total of 548 deer-related vehicle accidents were reported
in the 5-year period. Most accidents (94%) involved collisions
with deer. Only 33 (6%) of accidents results from avoiding
deer. The accidents resulted in 9 human injuries in 8 accidents
(Table 1).
Table 1. Human injuries and property damage resulting from deer vehicle accidents in Lynchburg, VA. 1987-1991.
1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 All
Total 105 91 94 124 134 548
Human injuries 1 0 3 2 3 9
Human fatalities 1 0 0 0 0 1
There was one fatality.
Time of year had a major effect on frequency of deer-
vehicle accidents (Table 2). October, November and December
were the months of peak accident numbers with November
having 26% of all accidents. Several factors probably combine
to produce this pattern including deer behavior prior to, during,
and after the rut, light conditions, and the fact that traffic
patterns associated with commuting to work coincide with
darkness.
Table 2. Monthly distribution of deer-vehicle accidents in Lynchburg, VA 1987-1991.
1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 All %
J 2 6 14 8 5 35 6.39
F 7 4 4 6 5 26 4.75
M 10 8 6 6 6 36 6.57
A 6 3 6 3 4 22 4.01
M 4 5 6 8 4 27 4.93
J 1 4 6 3 9 23 4.20
J 3 5 2 7 8 25 4.56
A 8 4 3 3 7 25 4.56
S 2 8 5 10 6 31 5.66
O 15 13 15 16 17 76 13.87
N 29 20 21 37 35 142 25.91
D 18 11 6 17 28 80 14.60
Total 105 91 94 124 548
Most of the accidents occurred between 1700 and 0100
hors. (Table 3). Rather few accidents occurred during the
daytime or in the early morning hours when presumably traffic
was light. Only a relatively low percent of accidents (12.1%)
occurred between 0600 and 0900 when most people drive to
work.
Table 3. Time of day when deer vehicle accidents occurred in Lynchburg, VA, 1987-1991
Hour 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 All %
<1a.m. 3 5 0 7 13 28 5.1
1-2 6 3 4 4 6 23 4.2
2-3 4 4 4 3 1 16 2.9
3-4 5 3 2 3 4 17 3.1
4-5 3 3 4 4 3 17 3.1
5-6 3 4 4 1 6 18 3.3
6-7 6 8 4 5 8 31 5.7
7-8 5 5 1 6 4 21 3.8
8-9 1 4 2 3 4 14 2.6
9-10 3 2 2 1 2 10 1.8
10-11 1 1 2 1 3 8 1.5
11-12 1 2 1 0 2 6 1.1
12-1 p.m. 0 2 3 0 3 8 1.5
1-2 2 0 0 0 2 4 0.7
2-3 0 5 1 2 4 12 2.2
3-4 0 1 0 0 1 2 0.4
4-5 2 0 2 3 1 8 1.5
5-6 10 5 7 10 8 40 7.3
6-7 11 8 8 15 10 52 9.5
7-8 8 6 11 9 14 48 8.8
8-9 9 6 8 14 13 50 9.1
9-10 7 7 6 10 9 39 7.1
10-12 6 3 9 15 5 38 6.9
11-12 9 4 9 8 8 38 6.9
All 548 100.0
Light conditions vary with time of day throughout the year
and may influence the diurnal pattern of accidents. Accidents
were relatively evenly distributed across days of the week
(Table 4). The patterns of accidents seem less associated with
travel to and from work than with traffic during evening hours.
Table 4. Deer-vehicle accidents by day of week in Lynchburg, VA, 1987-1991.
Day 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 All %
Su 11 7 17 19 16 70 12.8
Mo 15 15 24 18 12 84 15.3
Tu 12 14 13 16 16 71 13.0
We 17 14 9 13 22 75 13.7
Th 20 15 10 23 25 93 17.0
Fr 15 11 10 13 23 72 13.1
Sa 15 15 11 22 20 83 15.1
All 105 91 94 124 134 548 100.0
Light conditions were important factors in deer-vehicle
collisions (Table 5). Most (75%) accidents took place in
darkness and 50% of the total were on lighted highways.
Relatively few deer-vehicle accidents took place in dawn and
dusk conditions (total of 6.1%) despite the coincidence of
dawn and dusk with times of commuting to and from work
during months with most accidents.
Table 5. Deer-vehicle accidents in relation to lighting conditions in Lynchburg, VA 1987-1991.
Lighting Conditions 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 All %
Dawn 4 2 4 4 4 18 3.3
Daylight 12 29 16 19 30 106 19.3
Dusk 4 1 5 1 3 14 2.6
Dark/Highway Lighted 58 45 48 56 67 274 50.0
Dark/Highway Unlighted 27 14 21 44 30 136 24.8
All 105 91 94 124 134 548 100.0
Little effect of weather conditions on the pattern of deer
accidents was noted (Table 6) as most took place in clear
weather conditions. However, this may reflect a propensity of
deer to move during good weather conditions.
Table 6. Deer-vehicle accidents in relation to weather conditions in Lynchburg, VA 1987-1992.
Weather Conditions 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 All %
Clear 84 75 72 100 106 437 79.8
Cloudy 11 12 12 16 17 68 12.4
Fog 0 1 2 0 1 4 0.7
Mist/rain 9 3 7 8 9 36 6.6
Snow/sleet 1 0 1 0 0 2 0.4
Other 0 0 0 0 1 1 0.2
All 548
CONCLUSIONS
Most deer-vehicle collisions occur under conditions of
darkness and the majority occur in the months October through
December. Advice to motorists on avoiding collisions with
deer could be focused on these main patterns. Further, there
are major implications for design of tests to evaluate devices
designed to keep deer off roadways such as the work of Schafer
and Penland (1985). Such evaluations should allow for
differences in diurnal and seasonal behaviors of deer. How
lighting conditions coincide with traffic patterns should be
considered in designs. In particular, substantial changes in
seasonal patterns of accidents dictate that the length of time
treatments are applied should be short.
LITERATURE CITED
Allen,R. E. and D. R. McCullough. 1976. Deer-car accidents
in southern Michigan. J. Wildl. Manage. 40:317-325.
Bashore, T. L., W. M. Tzilkowski, and E. D. Bellis. 1985.
Analysis of deer-vehicle collision sites in Pennsylvania.
J. Wildl. Manage. 49:769-774.
Bellis, E. D. and H. B. Graves. 1971. Deer mortality on a
Pennsylvania interstate highway. J. Wildl. Manage.
35:232-237.
Reilly, R. E. and H. E. Green. 1974. Deer mortality on a
Michigan interstate highway. J. Wildl. Manage. 38:16-
19.
Scanlon, P. F. and S. M. Muth. 1979. Approaches by states to
educating drivers about wildlife hazards on roads. Proc.
Annu. Conf. Southeast. Assoc. Fish Wild]. Agencies
33:765-766.
Schafer,J. A. and S. T. Penland. 1985. Effectiveness of
swareflex reflectors in reducing deer-vehicle accidents.
J. Wildl. Manage. 49:774-776.


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A SUMMARY OF REPORTED DEER-RELATED VEHICLE ACCIDENTS IN A VIRGINIA CITY

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