I read with great interest the article in the November ON by Dr. Lee Foote on motorcycle-deer collisions. While I question some of his statistics (over a million deer hit in the US in 2010 but only 200 human deaths means there was only one human death per 5000 collisions.) Hard to believe, but maybe true. Dr. Foote also notes that 70% of the deaths were motorcyclists, which I well believe, as we are much more vulnerable than in our cars, though we represent a small percentage of people on the road and our average distance driven per year is lower than car or truck drivers.
BTW, 2010 may be the latest year available for statistics on deer crashes, but my best guess is that they have at least doubled at this point in time, late 2014, and maybe have quadrupled.
Another statistic worth noting: deer collisions increased TEN TIMES between 2008 and 2010 though miles driven increased only 2% in the US. Why? "Thank protection, agricultural foods and predator removal." He is right, I believe, though he forgot to mention that every year there are fewer deer hunters.
As motorcyclists, we would like to have the deer population reduced to maybe 25% of what it is now. While riders are small percentage of the US or Canada drivers, there are a lot of people who no longer think of deer as the loveable Bambi. Not just the people who have hit deer with their cars and paid the deductible then seen their insurance rate go up. Tons of people have seen their gardens decimated, not only in rural areas but even in towns, by deer.
The solution? Well, we are not going to decrease agricultural foods and we are not going to re-introduce deer predators in meaningful numbers. Nor are we likely to increase the number of amateur hunters. I think the solution is market hunting by people who are capable of passing tests in firearms safety with clear instructions of which deer to shoot (which I think should be does and fawns.) They also must know how to field-dress and skin a deer. Then we need butcher shops that will hang them and butcher them. Done properly, venison is gourmet food!
Too many deer are clearly a problem, and not just for riders. Love to hear your responses.
BTW, 2010 may be the latest year available for statistics on deer crashes, but my best guess is that they have at least doubled at this point in time, late 2014, and maybe have quadrupled.
Another statistic worth noting: deer collisions increased TEN TIMES between 2008 and 2010 though miles driven increased only 2% in the US. Why? "Thank protection, agricultural foods and predator removal." He is right, I believe, though he forgot to mention that every year there are fewer deer hunters.
As motorcyclists, we would like to have the deer population reduced to maybe 25% of what it is now. While riders are small percentage of the US or Canada drivers, there are a lot of people who no longer think of deer as the loveable Bambi. Not just the people who have hit deer with their cars and paid the deductible then seen their insurance rate go up. Tons of people have seen their gardens decimated, not only in rural areas but even in towns, by deer.
The solution? Well, we are not going to decrease agricultural foods and we are not going to re-introduce deer predators in meaningful numbers. Nor are we likely to increase the number of amateur hunters. I think the solution is market hunting by people who are capable of passing tests in firearms safety with clear instructions of which deer to shoot (which I think should be does and fawns.) They also must know how to field-dress and skin a deer. Then we need butcher shops that will hang them and butcher them. Done properly, venison is gourmet food!
Too many deer are clearly a problem, and not just for riders. Love to hear your responses.