Top 10 Animals that Cause Car Wrecks

We have all had it happen to us…  It’s late at night and you are driving on a country road or maybe even a highway in the middle of nowhere and then all of sudden something crosses the road in front of you.  A near miss and a notice to be on the lookout as generally, animals travel in packs and that probably was not the last animal you are going to encounter.  If all goes well we make it out of a tense driving situation without any road kill (sorry that is a common term whether you like it or not).  It is far from the intentional slaying of animals utilizing your vehicle, these are accidents where animals just happened to get in the way of your car driving down a perfectly good road.  It happens a lot more than you might think. 

Here are the top 10 animals that cause car wrecks:

1.     Deer. For some reason, deer really do find solace in staring at oncoming headlights. Whether they are aware of the threat or not, they seem to prefer standing firm, getting the full force of the vehicle, even taking lives in the mix. There are many lives lost to these types of accidents due to the size and weight of the animals, with many hooves and antlers causing great injury.

2.     Wild turkey. If you are in one of the many areas that carry wild turkeys, you will find that these animals often find their way into the roadway, especially along the highway. This can be extremely dangerous if you are riding at a high rate of speed and attempt to avoid the animal, however, impact is not going to be as dangerous as with deer.

3.     Squirrels. There have been commercials mimicking the behaviors of sneaky squirrels that find their way onto the street just as you are passing by. With such small creatures, you often see them only as you advance closer, often leaving you dodging an animal too late and causing many serious car accidents

4.     Ducks. There are duck crossings everywhere, but unfortunately, not everyone minds them and not all ducks do either. People may ignore the duck crossing and attempt to go through the cross quickly, often colliding with the animals or flipping the vehicle attempting to avoid collision.

5.     Dogs. There are people out there that are dog lovers but these friendly creatures can still find themselves led astray by vehicles that lead them elsewhere. As so many people find great pals in dogs, they often try their best to avoid hitting a dog, leading to many accidents.

6.     Cats. There is a similarity between dogs and cats, and that is the love for each by so many. With cats, they are typically quicker, but end up sitting their lazy butts on the street as cars try to go by. In many cases, however, people are not given fair warning as cats love to dart out quickly, leading to accidents of all severity.

7.     Birds. While it is not as common, there have been many car accidents associated with birds flying upon the windshield or into the windshield, blocking vision and causing a wreck. This is a very dangerous accident, especially if the animal impairs the driver’s vision.

8.     Raccoons. There are many areas that are prominent with raccoons that seem to have the same love for the street as many other animals, sometimes finding their way in line with an oncoming animal. For so many people who find these animals to be cute and loving, they often try their best to avoid hitting them, causing an accident instead.

9.     Bunnies. Yes, bunnies, not rabbits, because when they are on the road, everyone is yelling “don’t hit the bunny!” Unfortunately, as you are trying not to hit the bunny, there are other vehicles on the road that can crash into you unaware of what you are doing.

10.  Opossum. Opossums are blind naturally, giving them keen hearing but poor ability to navigate around safely when it comes to roadways. With roads often going off into wooded areas and sections, it is easy to find these animals on the road, often causing accidents as people avoid hitting them.

Whether you accidentally hit the animal or crash avoiding the animal, these animals are the most dangerous animals when it comes to car accidents. Hey, let’s be careful on the roads out there!