Couple of nights ago I was cruising along the A14 in the dead of night, all of a sudden I saw a small fox on the road in my lane, it was kind of pacing back and forth, my first thought was to move over to the other lane but out of nowhere this idiot appeared and looked like he was going at 100 mph so changing lane was not an option. The fox froze right in the middle of the lane and I had no other choice but to try and go above it hoping it would stay put but just as it was about to disappear under my front bumper it ran to the left and I heard the barely noticeable ‘‘thud…thud’’ as the idiot car driver flew by - I shouldn’t be calling him that but that was my thought in that moment.
I’ve never hit anything on the road before, always tried to avoid/stop when safe to do so and generally animals have the good sense to run back to the grass/bushes way before I get too close but this one was the first where I couldn’t do anything as it all happened in maybe 3 seconds from it coming within my headlights range. Feeling bad aside, it made me think if that was a human or a dead car with blocked reflectors or turned sideways I would’ve had the same 3 seconds to react, maybe 5. How do you stop a truck going 50-55mph in 5 seconds?
Has anyone noticed an increase in 4 legged pedestrians on the roads lately? That same night before that accident I managed to dodge a rabbit, another fox and watched in amusement a deer cross the 5-ways roundabout where the services are without a care in the world. Very common lately but there was a notable decrease in the amount of roadkill laying about compared to the pre-covid period. Did these ■■■■■■■ use the quiet time when the roads were less busy to multiply in the absence of their natural enemies and we’re now witnessing a wild animals population explosion?
This time of year there are more young animals starting out alone, I think. They learn about traffic, or die.
I dont like hitting animals from principle, but be aware deer can damage a truck, or come in a car windscreen as their legs are hit by the bumper. A fox or badger can rip off a cars cooling pipes etc as you pass over them. And solidly built wild boar can easily smash up the front.
A few years back early morning, a smallish bird came low out of a bush as I was riding by. At 80mph even a small bird is a hell of a shock smacking into your full helmet. Dread to imagine a pheasant…
As a rough rule of thumb you should always be able to stop within the distance you can see. This will protect you from broken down cars, roadworks, accidents etc but of course isn’t foolproof against things walking out in front of you.
I think it says good things about you that you’re concerned about killing wildlife, but it’s a fact of life that some will die on the roads. Think of it as natural selection in front of your eyes. Those that adapt to roads go on to breed. Changing behavior has been observed in hedgehogs whose natural reaction to danger is to roll up into a ball, but when suddenly faced with oncoming traffic have been seen to run out of the way instead.
But slow down as much as you safely can to give them more time to shift. Sound your horn and flash your lights to give them the idea that something big and scary is coming but don’t swerve trying to avoid them. They are likely to move at the same time, staying in your path, while you are likely to stuff it into a ditch or a parked / oncoming vehicle etc.
One of the first times that I met an Eastern European driver, (he was a great bloke and a good driver bye the way). He was out in the rural areas when he hit a pheasant. It broke the windscreen so he phoned it in and was shouting about a great big red chicken. The worst thing about hitting wildlife is they are never insured.
alamcculloch:
. He was out in the rural areas when he hit a pheasant. It broke the windscreen so he phoned it in and was shouting about a great big red chicken.
That made me laugh waaay more than it should have done!
Probably because I once convinced an EE mate that the English for wasp is Flying Tiger! To this day he still calls them that.
edd1974:
I hate stupid pigeons
Am sure they must be blind or suicidal as lost count of the number of.times had to break as one almost flies into my windscreen
Seriously,why would you brake to avoid killing a poxy pigeon ?
edd1974:
I hate stupid pigeons
Am sure they must be blind or suicidal as lost count of the number of.times had to break as one almost flies into my windscreen
Seriously,why would you brake to avoid killing a poxy pigeon ?
To be fair I’ve had a pigeon crack my screen last year, must have hit it on point of beak [emoji23][emoji23]
ive ran over an already dead boxer dog on the A74 years ago,had an owl and pheasant smack and wreck the front of the truck,skelped a deer on my nearside,£1100 damage,and ran over an off duty police dog.
not pleasant just all just being unavoidable in the wrong place wrong time.
this is the time of year for it though,especially for deer in the mating season and once they are hot to trot,they are just completely irrational.
why am i now thinking of my misses??
This thread reminds me of a time I was driving along the E40 one night and at the last minute, spotted a family of ducks crossing the carriageway. Anyway, didn’t slow down and presumed that they had waddled to safety but when I pulled into Jabbeke to fuel up, i noticed one of them was hanging from the front grille and when I tried to pull it out its head came off.
True story
edd1974:
I hate stupid pigeons
Am sure they must be blind or suicidal as lost count of the number of.times had to break as one almost flies into my windscreen
Seriously,why would you brake to avoid killing a poxy pigeon ?
If can brake or avoid it I will. As id hate to have to scrape a dead pigeon off my windscreen. And who knows what kind of damage it could cause .could crack the window maybe. ?But I don’t intend to find out
edd1974:
I hate stupid pigeons
Am sure they must be blind or suicidal as lost count of the number of.times had to break as one almost flies into my windscreen
Seriously,why would you brake to avoid killing a poxy pigeon ?
I hit one one morning, heavy dew, been driving about fifteen minutes, so still a lot of moisture on the cab, had to stop, pigeon lost a lot of feathers and were stuck to the screen, thats why I’d try to avoid a pigeon.
edd1974:
If can brake or avoid it I will. As id hate to have to scrape a dead pigeon off my windscreen. And who knows what kind of damage it could cause .could crack the window maybe. ?But I don’t intend to find out
I’ve only hit 1 pigeon at a low speed (30mph) and it just exploded in a cloud of feathers though it didn’t hit my windscreen but the top of the cab just above it. Also had a bat hit my windscreen but it was a soft impact, I saw it bounce off to the side so it remained intact to my surprise. I don’t count these as kills because birds/flyers come out of nowhere and they have 3 dimensions to move around, why they chose to fly low is their problem though I do try to avoid hitting them where possible.
This one time I saw a squirrel get hit by a car in lane 2, get ragdolled forwards and to the right, hit by another car in lane 4 while still in the air, ragdolled further and made a splat on the barrier. RIP squirrel.
This one time I saw a squirrel get hit by a car in lane 2, get ragdolled forwards and to the right, hit by another car in lane 4 while still in the air, ragdolled further and made a splat on the barrier. RIP squirrel.
if it was a grey it dont matter ,you should kill the american invaders anyhow. long live the red
It’s not just a towel rail.
Handy at minimising damage from horses, cattle, feral pigs and kangaroos < 8’, but offers limited protection from camels and wombats.
A couple years ago I hit a monkjack deer on the A34 in the dead of night. It was in my lane looking back at another monkjack on the grass verge. It was a horrible noise and the lorry kind of lifted up a little as my wheels went over it. I stopped in a layby to check for damage, and there was none, but I remember looking at the mess it made under my unit and fuel tank and feeling terrible for the poor thing. It was obliterated.
Aside from that there’s been a few rabbits, a bat, various birds, and a few rats.
I once saw a picture of a middle east driver’s cab that was written off after hitting a camel.
It’s not just a towel rail.
Handy at minimising damage from horses, cattle, feral pigs and kangaroos < 8’, but offers limited protection from camels and wombats.
You need some mesh over that windscreen mate.
Think of the pigeons.
I was driving one early dusk evening on a back road, a duck and it’s line of ducklings were crossing the road,.and after trying my best to avoid them I ran over the mother.
Christ I felt really bad about it.
Another morning after just leaving home I was following another truck (same road in fact ) a deer jumped out and actually bounced off the truck in front, it ran away and it’s back leg was hanging like a string.
I know the guy in the local animal rescue centre who had a wild animal sanctuary for injured birds and animals.
He went out in his van, but rang me to say he’d had no luck finding it.
Underneath this butch macho exterior lies a ■■■■ big softie when it comes to kids and animals.
Was unfortunate enough to hit a stag outside Tyndrum many years ago. It was stood on some raised ground at the side of the road then jumped right in front of me. I was in a hire car and the phone call to them was “interesting”.
You’ve hit what? Any damage to the car?
Bonnet rather dented, headlight gone, left wing dented, hole in the windscreen, roof dented, passenger door unusable.
As we collided it seems the beasty had rolled over the car making the vehicle a write off.
Strangely I couldn’t find the carcass, reported to the police who reckoned it either crept away to die or it survived.
The gf had said shortly before the incident that she’d like to see a deer close up, this one stuck an antler through the screen. Careful of what you wish for
) a deer jumped out and actually bounced off the truck in front, it ran away and it’s back leg was hanging like a string.