IOWA, USA — With the winter season approaching, traffic officials and nature experts warn of an increased risk of hitting deer on the highways and roads.
Jace Elliot, deer biologist for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, said that November is the peak mating season for whitetail deer.
"You're going to see a lot more deer moving during daylight hours, particularly male deer or bucks as they're in search of potential females to mate with," Elliot said. "So that's going to cause them to cover a lot more ground and cross a lot more roads, which is an unfortunate reality of living here in the Midwest."
Elliot and the Iowa Department of Transportation do not recommend steering away from deer as especially with increased snow and ice, there's an increased risk of a bad accident.
They recommend making a controlled stop with brakes and staying in your lane, and if you need to hit the deer, that is better than attempting to steer away.
"If you do encounter a deer on the road, and that deer passes by you without incident, stay vigilant as there's often more than one deer in a group during this time of year," Elliot said.
Elliot added that because of the mating season, deer may be roaming day or night.
"This time of year, it's actually the exception and you may encounter deer during any times of day - but I always recommend to stay particularly vigilant during early mornings and late evenings - kind of in that gray light period of time," he added.