Crashing into deer.

[McGary911]

I've been seeing a lot of dead deer by the side of the road lately, and it's gotten me thinking.... I have a new (to me) car that I really want to keep nice. Hitting a deer is not considered by me to be keeping it nice.

Anyone know if those little whistle makers you put on your bumper work? The ones that look like 1 1/2" long jet engines? They're suposed to make a ultrasonic whistle that keep deer away. I'd be willing to put them on the car if they are a valid deterrant.

I've only hit 1 deer in my life, (missed the first, punted the 2nd....it always seems to be #2 that gets whacked), and don't want to hit another.....

Thanks....

[Walt. H.]

I can't tell ya that they will work all the time, but I can tell you that they can't hurt to have either. :crossfing I have them on everything I own including my M/cycles, I live in upstate NY where theres plenty of deer and plenty of road kills. I drive alot at night and the best thing to do is to be alert, but sometimes that doesn't work either.(i've come very close many times and the odds are now against me for being that lucky :cards: to say i'm deer free).

I rather use a 150 grain projectile to kill and eat bambie :fire: , just doing my part for auto safety :biggrin: then to use my 5000 plus lbs, projectile that I drive.

Whats even worse are the head-on collisions caused by the person trying to avoid just hitting the deer.

Walt :crossfing

Ps;The guys further north have to worry about 1200 plus lbs "moose. :shocking: :eek!:

[Lenny]

IMO the little whistles "scare" the deer out and into your vehicle.

I have killed more deer by vehicle than I could ever count. They are everywhere here, all over my property constantly and everywhere on the road. I kind of like them cuz they exercise my dog far better than I ever could. :D

I don't think there is anything that disuades them from coming into your way. It is just a luck thing as far as I am concerned. I hit one recently in a little Chevy Cavalier and it was great cuz it sent it over the roof with minimal damage. Then a few months back I took one out with my work F-250 4by and all it did was dent the license plate. I had a '67 Chevelle Malibu (a beauty) and a deer totally ruined the front clip.

Cross your fingers. ;)

Cross your fingers.

[MOP]

I also live in a heavily populated deer area, Bonnie has the whistles and feels they help. I toot the horn a lot in the bad sections and so far so good. My Dad creamed a new Caddy years back he got me started on tooting the horn, seems to work but probably pisses off people along the road.

Phil

[boxy]

I also live in a heavily populated deer area, Bonnie has the whistles and feels they help. I toot the horn a lot in the bad sections and so far so good. My Dad creamed a new Caddy years back he got me started on tooting the horn, seems to work but probably pisses off people along the road.

Phil
Phil do you toot the horn with your left turn signal, or on the opposite beat ... :D

I drove an E350 85000 KM last year all over deer country up here, and in Moose country down the East Coast, and never saw one.

I had whistles on that van, but haven't put them on our daily drivers yet.

I drove about 200 fast backcountry miles in a Mini Cooper last week and I was very aware of my size, relative to a 230 lb buck :eek:

[McGary911]

I hit one recently in a little Chevy Cavalier Lenny, that's funny, the 1 time I hit one, it was in a Cavalier....Guess I'll get a set of the whistlers, just to be a bit safer.....paying attention helps too...I've missed plenty of times because of that......Hey, my Bday is in 5 days.....maybe ill get a whistle or to for my 35th...lol

[gcarter]

Tell me about these whistles. I am unfamiliar with them. The deer around here are kind of timid. Not so the Black Bears.
And maybe they would work with turtles and alligators! :)

[Darrell]

I don't know if the whistels work, but a Winchester 30/30 works pretty good. :biggrin:

Im sorry to say that deer can be deadly if you hit one.

Darrell

[Walt. H.]

I'll add this Toot- toot to the birthday boy, and bang bang for us hunters and if you do hit one don't forget to cut the "back straps out. :D

But anyway those whistles are to cause the deer to freeze in their tracks so you can drive around them. :embarasse :crossfing but don't forget to clean the bug crap out of them from all your summer driving if your gonna expect them to work. :bonk: OK?

Keeping a sharp watch,
W.H :rlol:

[Formula Jr]

Whistles and Other Noisemakers

http://www.usroads.com/images/clear.gif Ultrasonic whistles mounted on vehicle bumpers emit a shrill tone when air passes through them as the vehicle travels over thirty miles per hour. Manufacturers claim these whistles are audible to deer (but not to humans) and effective in frightening deer from the roadway. The whistle is about two inches long and bullet shaped. In 1990, according to The New York Times NATIONAL, deer whistles cost about $25, and such groups as the California, Iowa, and Kansas state police were using them on their patrol cars.

http://www.usroads.com/images/clear.gif While manufacturers contend deer can hear the whistle up to a quarter mile away, no published research verifies the device's effectiveness. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety presented evidence refuting claims promoting the whistles:


Georgia's Game and Fish Department, for example, found that in hundreds of observations from vehicles equipped with deer whistles, deer didn't respond. Whistles on vehicles going 25-30 mph produced no ultrasonic sound, although some ultrasonic and lower frequencies were produced when the whistles were blown by mouth. According to wildlife biologists at the University of Georgia, neither deer nor humans can hear ultrasonic sound. Whistles blown by mouth near captive deer produce no response. http://www.usroads.com/images/clear.gif A University of Wisconsin study found that three types of whistle did produce low-pitched and ultrasonic sounds at speeds of 30 to 70 miles per hour; however, researchers were unable to verify that deer responded to the sounds, even at distances well below the distances from which manufacturers claim the whistles are heard. Moreover, deer would only be able to hear the whistles if there were a straight shot between the deer and the whistle. If curves, trees, or other obstacles came between the deer and the whistle, the device would be ineffective.

http://www.usroads.com/images/clear.gif According to an article called "Blowing the Whistle on Deer Scare Devices" in the Mid-February 1993 Farm Journal, the Ohio State Police installed deer whistles on their patrol vehicles; however, they reported finding no significant decrease in collisions between patrol cars and deer. The same article indicated that a panel of the World Society for the Protection of Animals could find no data proving "that such a device can actually stop an animal crossing the road, which is the main purpose of the device." Finally, Washington State University researcher Leonard Askham felt the evidence tended to favor a conclusion that deer whistles do not work. "Even if the devices were effective," Askham warned, "they would soon become clogged with insects and dirt and stop working."


However, its been demonstrated that Anti-deer whistles are extremely effective when used on water craft.
In a ten year study by the Center for the Absorbsion of Federal Funds, it was found that no water craft fitted with an anti-deer whistle had been involved in a collision with a deer. But this seems to only apply to water craft while under way in a marine environment.

CAFF, has applied for more funding to determine the reasons for this statistical anomaly.