A report by the Highway Loss Data Institute shows that 223 people nationwide died in animal-vehicle crashes last year, up from 150 in 2000 and 101 in 1993.
The trend has extended to Utah, which recorded no fatal crashes with animals in 1993, but had four last year. There were 36 such deaths in Utah from 1993 to 2007.
The Loss Data Institute blames urban sprawl for the problem and said the vast majority of the deaths occurred when a vehicle struck a deer. And the sponsors warned that now is the time for drivers to be on the lookout.
The study found insurance claims for crashes with animals are three times higher in November, when animals are breeding, than it is from January to September.
Terry Messmer, a professor of wildlife conflict management at Utah State University, has been following deer-vehicle collisions since coming to Utah 18 years ago. He says the number of incidents is on the rise, perhaps because more are being reported.
"Highways cross a lot of migration corridors," Messmer said.
Thus far in 2008, the Utah Highway Patrol has logged two fatal animal accidents. In April, a motorist died when a car struck a cow. In June, another one died after a vehicle struck a deer.
Summit County Sheriff Dave Edmunds said his officers respond almost every day to a car striking a deer, elk or moose. Like most people with a firsthand view of the problem, Edmunds blames sprawl. Summit County has seen houses rise on mountain slopes and meadows that are prime habitat for large herbivores.
"If you're driving in rural Utah, it's not a matter of if you're going to hit a deer," Edmunds said. "It's when."
Even Edmunds' office is not immune. In February, a Summit County deputy was driving on Interstate 80 through Parleys Canyon, and his cruiser struck a moose lying in the road. Another car had hit the moose moments earlier. Edmunds said the deputy suffered minor leg injuries and has returned to duty.
The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources and Utah Department of Transportation are working on getting better numbers, but say their best estimate for deer killed in collisions in Utah is about 10,000 each year.
That is about one-third the number of deer killed by hunters in an average year, according to DWR big game coordinator Anise Aoude. But whereas hunters target bucks, about 7,000 female deer die in collisions.
The loss of deer to collisions "is very significant, not because of the number but because of the makeup," Aoude said. "When we hunt, the harvest is only males that do not bear young so it is not as detrimental to the population."
Highway planners and wildlife officials have tried to prevent auto-deer collisions, often with little success. The methods include trying to lure deer to use crosswalks across highways and placing ultrasound devices on cars. A study using infrared sensors is being conducted in Yellowstone National Park.
Messmer said two methods seem to work best.
One of the most common is warning signs in areas where deer migrate across highways. The agencies also have used more-obvious temporary warning signs.
But the most efficient method, Messmer said, is building a transportation system that separates animals from traffic, using underpasses and overpasses combined with fencing. "We try to funnel them into corridors and encourage rather than restrict animal movement."
ncarlisle@sltrib.com
wharton@sltrib.com
---
* THE ASSOCIATED PRESS contributed to this report.
