Male Elk Photo: Malene Thyssen / Wikimedia
In Spring, they say, a young man’s fancy turns to love—but for young elks, the time is now, September through October. Sweden’s National Wildlife Accident Council is taking the occasion to warn motorists to beware of love-dazed elks on the roads.
A Council spokesman pointed out that “if you’re going at 90 kilometres an hour and it’s dark and rainy and an elk steps out onto the road, you don’t stand a chance.” Neither, presumably, does the elk. So far this year, they say, 2709 elks, 23,230 deer and 1819 wild hogs have died on Sweden’s roads; last year the total hit 47,000. No word on how many motorists died hitting half-ton animals.
Dawn and dusk are the peak times for elk activity and also for low visibility. The Council suggests that motorists slow down to avoid collisions. Other initiatives that may help cut down on the death toll include a plan we reported HERE last week to use sensors in the woods and flashing lights on the highway to warn motorists of activity.
