Report: Lots More California Deer Die From Cars Than Hunters

With deer hunting seasons winding down, a new report via the Sacramento Bee concluded that California deer should fear motorists more than hunters. Here are some details:

Vehicles kill an estimated 44,000 mule deer and 780 mountain lions on California roads each year, according to a new University of California, Davis, report that identified hundreds of wildlife collision hotspotsacross the state. …

Researchers argued that California needs more roadside fencing to prevent animals from entering traffic, particularly where existing bridges and culverts could provide safe passage beneath highways.

“But just building a crossing doesn’t mean wildlife will use it — they’ll try to cross wherever they are. Fencing is the answer to reducing roadkill, not crossings alone,” said Fraser Shilling, director of the UC Davis Road Ecology Center.