[Darwin]

IN THE U.S., DEER ARE INVOLVED IN MORE HUMAN DEATHS THAN 4X THE
COMBINED TOTAL NUMBER OF DEATHS CAUSED BY OTHER ANIMALS!​

Deer take a fatal toll on motorcyclists
Washington Post Article
By Ashley Halsey III (Was Ashley's mother, Ashley Halsey Junior?! :icon_mrha)​

When a deer collides with a vehicle that weighs a couple of tons, the fragile animal almost always gets the worst of it. When a deer meets a motorcycle on the roadway, both the rider and the deer may suffer the same fate. Research by AAA released Monday found that seven of the eight people who died in crashes involving deer over a three-year period in Maryland and Virginia were motorcyclists. Nationwide, the auto club said, about 70 percent of deer-crash fatalities involve motorcycles.


The deer mortality rate becomes most evident this time of year, as the mating season has more deer on the move. “Because they are riding on two wheels, motorcycle riders and their passengers are especially vulnerable when they smash into a deer,” said John B. Townsend II aka CAPTAIN OBVIOUS. “Such motorcycle-deer strikes can be frightening and even fatal.” (!?) Two of the three people killed in regional crashes involving deer this year were motorcyclists, Townsend said.


The proliferation of deer and other species in urbanized regions, where they have few, if any, predators, has become apparent by their appearance beside the highway. With the end of the season when deer are busy giving birth and raising doe, dead deer are showing up more frequently. Data presented last year by the Insurance Information Institute, an industry group that has access to insurance claims information, indicated there are about 80,000 collisions with deer each year in the Washington region. It estimated cost of the collisions in 2009 at $4.6 billion.


In 2010, the latest year for which there are national statistics, 403 people were killed in accidents involving deer, one of the lowest totals in three decades.

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I saw at least 40 deer on the way home a couple of nights ago. Thankfully, I wasn't on my VTX because deer jumped out in front my truck on 3 separate occasions during a 15 mile stretch. As I was about to let me guard down, the last one tried to kamikaze me less than 100 yards from of my house!

There's no doubt that deer pose a mortal threat to bikers. According to the article, 403 motorcycle fatalities involved deer in 2010. The NHTSA recorded, 3615 people were died in motorcycle accidents that same year. In other words, deer account for over 11% of all motorcycle fatalities in 2010! Incidentally, I also noticed that 60% of all MC fatalities occur at night.

I've recently put some deer whistles on my bike, but have little faith in their efficacy. So, I'm preparing to order an inexpensive electronic version ($15) that suppose to scare off deer for a quarter mile: http://www.etrailer.com/Electronics/Hopkins/HM27512VA.html?feed=npn&gclid=CKWw7Py_9bICFQKCnQodf1AAvA

Short video of guy hitting deer, then hollers like stuck pig:

 

[M-2]

Hitting a wolf would suck too.

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[Darwin]

Hitting a wolf would suck too.

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Unlike deer, wolves have the good sense to avoid humans and vehicles.

 

[Deno]

Let's just eat more deer. Then the roads would be safer, and we would be healthier.

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[gatoremt]

Maybe there should be more hunting. There are not enought days to hunt deer.

 

[trkrJeff]

Well, around here, the wolves also avoid deer and tend to prey on livestock. So more wolves would be bad. The feds reintroduced them to WI, now their not endangered, and their getting s wolf hunt set up because of the issues with then.

 

[Mondorah]

Interesting stats, Darwin. I had one "Kamikaze" my front fender a couple years ago. Mashed the fender, broke the turn signal/side marker light, broke the driver side mirror, and it pissed all over my truck too! I was going less than 20mph. It hit me like a jet fighter plane. BAM!!! Didn't even have the courtesy to die! Just ran off. Unhurt. I can not imagine being on the bike and taking that hit. I'd a been done right there. Dead...and wet. Not the way to go.
It is not uncommon for me to see at least ten deer a day in my normal travels. Even the months when they are less active, we still have them. I had 37 in my yard two seasons ago. Always have herds...7-15 go through. I have a couple acres at the edge of many miles of large farm fields and spotty woods/tree groves. The boys have taken two eight pointers right here in the yard in the last two years, out in my pine forest. Got a twelve roaming around out there this year.
We, however, are in the middle of their home too though. Wolves...no. more, longer, hunt seasons...yes. Deer are deadly on a bike, and delicious on a plate. Gotta keep scanning while we ride. Be alert folks! Ride safe. Eat the problem.

Ray

 

[epiphysis]

I have lived here for 25 years, but only recently have let hunters come in and get some! there's lots of deer here......we have apple trees on the property!

 

[BigBoreVTX]

Wolves are not the answer I do say the deer do thin out. The havoc the wolves create is not worth it.
I am doing my part with my Bow here in Ohio.
I have sat in on a seminar that said we have more deer now that we did back when Daniel Boon was alive.
The stats they gave we have 250,000 deer now. O.D.N.R has said they would like to see 75,000 taken out
but most likely we only will only take 50,000. On the other hand the insurance companies would like to see 150,000
taken out but as we all know it is a money thing out of state hunters create revenue.

 

[Darwin]

Well, around here, the wolves also avoid deer and tend to prey on livestock. So more wolves would be bad. The feds reintroduced them to WI, now their not endangered, and their getting s wolf hunt set up because of the issues with then.

Yeah, I'm aware of the arguments against wolves (all weak IMHO), but don't wish for this thread to devolve into a debate about wolves. For the sake of congeniality, let's just agree to disagree on this subject. Admittedly, bringing back wolves in adequate numbers to reduce the deer population will NOT be happening in the foreseeable future.

I've edited my original post in an attempt to avoid further controversy.

 

[Darwin]

Interesting stats, Darwin. I had one "Kamikaze" my front fender a couple years ago. Mashed the fender, broke the turn signal/side marker light, broke the driver side mirror, and it pissed all over my truck too! I was going less than 20mph. It hit me like a jet fighter plane. BAM!!! Didn't even have the courtesy to die! Just ran off. Unhurt. I can not imagine being on the bike and taking that hit. I'd a been done right there. Dead...and wet. Not the way to go.
It is not uncommon for me to see at least ten deer a day in my normal travels. Even the months when they are less active, we still have them. I had 37 in my yard two seasons ago. Always have herds...7-15 go through. I have a couple acres at the edge of many miles of large farm fields and spotty woods/tree groves. The boys have taken two eight pointers right here in the yard in the last two years, out in my pine forest. Got a twelve roaming around out there this year.
We, however, are in the middle of their home too though. Wolves...no. more, longer, hunt seasons...yes. Deer are deadly on a bike, and delicious on a plate. Gotta keep scanning while we ride. Be alert folks! Ride safe. Eat the problem.

Ray

I've hit and killed 6 with my cars and truck during the last decade. Hit the last one a little over a month ago. Problem with hunting as a solution to deer control is the restrictions with hunting on private land and growing suburbs. When I was young, I never saw a deer in the woods where my parents live. Now, my parents often see deer grazing in their back yard.

My main concern is smashing into one on my VTX. At this point, it seems inevitable unless that electronic deer whistle works as billed.

I have lived here for 25 years, but only recently have let hunters come in and get some! there's lots of deer here......we have apple trees on the property!

There are no lack of hunters where I live. When 'all gun' deer season starts, it sounds like a guerrilla war is being fought around here. The fact is that hunters haven't significantly impacted the deer population. As your post indicates, deer are thriving in suburbia and have been growing exponentially as a result.

That being said, I have absolutely no problem with increasing the season/limits.

 

[wngd]

There's no doubt that deer pose a significant threat to rider (and skateboarders for those that have seen the recent news video )
but the quote below is a bit sensationalized...........kinda hard for all the hit squirrels and bunnies to contribute much to the death count......you should see a few moose accidents....

IN THE U.S., DEER ARE INVOLVED IN MORE HUMAN DEATHS THAN 4X THE
COMBINED TOTAL NUMBER OF DEATHS CAUSED BY OTHER ANIMALS!

 

[Darwin]

There's no doubt that deer pose a significant threat to rider (and skateboarders for those that have seen the recent news video )
but the quote below is a bit sensationalized...........kinda hard for all the hit squirrels and bunnies to contribute much to the death count......you should see a few moose accidents....

IN THE U.S., DEER ARE INVOLVED IN MORE HUMAN DEATHS THAN 4X THE
COMBINED TOTAL NUMBER OF DEATHS CAUSED BY OTHER ANIMALS!

The headline was NOT sensationalized. FYI, I referring to animals involved in all human deaths in the US including moose. If anything, the threat of other animals are sensationalized by the media.

Average deaths caused by the following animals in the United States:

• Bee/Wasp 53
• Dogs 31
• Spider 6.5
• Rattlesnake 5.5
• Mountain lion 1
• Shark 1
• Alligator 0.3
• Bear 0.5
• Scorpion 0.5
• Centipede 0.5
• Elephant 0.25
• Wolf 0.1
• Horse 20
• Bull 3

Despite the hype, vehicle fatalities involving moose are relatively rare in the U.S. Bees kill many more people than the moose. Moose related motorcycle fatalities in the U.S. are statistically insignificant. There may be some info out there on moose related snowmobile accidents...didn't look. First, moose only reside in a relatively small area of the continental US. Second, many of those states where moose do live have colder climates and low population densities.

I'm sure moose are a much bigger problem in Canada. Dunno, my post is about the mortal threat of deer to bikers in the United States. Someone else can start a thread about the dangers of moose if he/she wishes.

 

[bjkenne]

Darwin, not disputing your facts but I really like to know more about the shark driving death.

 

[Darwin]

Darwin, not disputing your facts but I really like to know more about the shark driving death.

Quoting all animal related fatalities in the US, not just vehicular.

 

[bjkenne]

Oh, ok, I missed that part.

 

[bjkenne]

but you do know that would have to be a very interesting story.

 

[wngd]

The point I was making is that OF COURSE deer account for far more deaths than most (all) other animals.
1/ There are far more of them than elephants on our roads
2/ Mountain lions don't generally run into traffic
3/ Many others like spiders are a bit too little to knock you off your mc...
4/ Haven't seen too many sharks coming out of the woods either (although I have heard of a "land shark"

Deaths per attack might be interesting as not too many survive a direct moose smack

Maybe you don't like the word "sensationalized" but it seemed rather obvious to me. Deer create tons of accidents with cars and mc since there are tons of them, they like to run out into traffic from the woods and they are stupid!

Cheers and ride safe.

The headline was NOT sensationalized. FYI, I referring to animals involved in all human deaths in the US including moose. If anything, the threat of other animals are sensationalized by the media.

Average deaths caused by the following animals in the United States:

• Bee/Wasp 53
• Dogs 31
• Spider 6.5
• Rattlesnake 5.5
• Mountain lion 1
• Shark 1
• Alligator 0.3
• Bear 0.5
• Scorpion 0.5
• Centipede 0.5
• Elephant 0.25
• Wolf 0.1
• Horse 20
• Bull 3

Despite the hype, vehicle fatalities involving moose are relatively rare in the U.S. Bees kill many more people than the moose. Moose related motorcycle fatalities in the U.S. are statistically insignificant. There may be some info out there on moose related snowmobile accidents...didn't look. First, moose only reside in a relatively small area of the continental US. Second, many of those states where moose do live have colder climates and low population densities.

I'm sure moose are a much bigger problem in Canada. Dunno, my post is about the mortal threat of deer to bikers in the United States. Someone else can start a thread about the dangers of moose if he/she wishes.

 

[Darwin]

The point I was making is that OF COURSE deer account for far more deaths than most (all) other animals.
1/ There are far more of them than elephants on our roads
2/ Mountain lions don't generally run into traffic
3/ Many others like spiders are a bit too little to knock you off your mc...
4/ Haven't seen too many sharks coming out of the woods either (although I have heard of a "land shark".

Reread the post you quoted slower. I clearly stated that the figures referred to ALL animal related deaths in the US, not just vehicular.

Maybe you don't like the word "sensationalized" but it seemed rather obvious to me. Deer create tons of accidents with cars and mc since there are tons of them, they like to run out into traffic from the woods and they are stupid!

What was sensationalized? Deers are involved in more human deaths in the US than all other animal related deaths combined X4. We all know that deer are involved in vehicular accidents, but I had no idea how many fatalities were caused by deer in the U.S....especially motorcycles.

Again, I haven't done the research for Canada. Moose may be the bigger threat there.

 

[Pastor JR]

Thanks for the reminder. I live in rural upstate NY where I have had to dodge, deer, dogs, cats, raccoon, fox, possum and turkey.