EVERETT — We’re entering roadkill season in Snohomish County.
Fall brings darker mornings and evenings, a cool cover that’s favored by animals on the move. Some animals also are migrating as they get ready for winter. Others are, erm, getting frisky (and therefore less cautious).
Add more cars on the road with school back in session, and the chances increase of sad roadside scenes of our furry neighbors — and possible injury to humans, too.
Not to mention the near-misses.
Norma Hatvany, of Mukilteo, had a string of encounters recently with deer on Highway 526. She encountered a doe near the Future of Flight Aviation Center, and another day near the Boeing employee parking lot. Both times she and other drivers slammed on the brakes.
“We all had to stand on our ears to keep from hitting her,” Hatvany said.
Washington State Department of Transportation crews remove more deer carcasses on state highways in Snohomish County in October and November than any other time of year, and September is a big month as well. Crews don’t track smaller carcasses.
That said, “roadkill season” is a bit of a misnomer in that there aren’t necessarily more animals crossing roadways in the fall, said Ruth Milner, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife biologist for Snohomish, Island and San Juan counties. It’s often a coincidence, especially when it comes to deer.
“In the heat of the day (deer) tend to bed down and wait for cooler times. They’re most active early in the morning and at dusk, which later in the season can coincide with rush hour traffic,” Milner said.
Even in odd years like this one — with an unusually dry summer bringing a lack of forage — deer in particular aren’t likely to change their movement patterns, she said.
“If there’s a road with a trail or something that will lead to it, they’ll tend to follow the path of least resistance,” Milner said.
And often that leads to roads and fast-moving hunks of metal.
In 2013, there were 1,971 reported vehicle-animal collisions across Washington, or 1.8 percent of all motor vehicle collisions. More than 11 percent of the crashes resulted in injuries to drivers or passengers. Four resulted in human fatalities.
Whidbey Island, along Highways 20 and 525, is a hot spot for deer-vehicle collisions. And you know you’re near Sequim when you see the unique flashing road signs warning about elk crossings in action.
Collisions with deer and elk are most likely to be reported. Across the state, there also have been collisions involving moose, bighorn sheep, cougar and black bear. The more commonly killed smaller animals are raccoons, coyotes, squirrels, rabbits, opossums, frogs, salamanders and snakes.
There have been efforts in recent years to protect wildlife and the drivers they might encounter.
The Washington State Department of Transportation’s I-90 Snoqualmie Pass east rebuild includes an elaborate, 150-foot-wide wildlife overcrossing that will be planted with native trees and vegetation to ease the north-south passage of animals in the surrounding forest. Elsewhere in the corridor, larger bridges provide ample room for wildlife to move underneath traffic.
Closer to home, Snohomish County Public Works installed an animal undercrossing in 2010 as part of building Quarry Road, an alternate route for heavy truck traffic near Granite Falls.
The undercrossing — a long culvert — reduces impacts to wildlife moving between a 5-acre wetland south of the roadway and a large riparian wetland complex to its north along the South Fork Stillaguamish River.
“Despite increasing residential growth in Granite Falls, several wildlife species continue to use this area,” said Terri Hawke, an environmental planner with Snohomish County. “The culvert provides them safe passage and reduces potential conflicts with the Quarry Road traffic.”
Since installation, the culvert has been monitored for wildlife use by students at the Learn and Serve Environmental Anthropology Field School at Edmonds Community College.
Cameras have captured images of many animals using the undercrossing, including deer, coyote, opossum, raccoon, cats, dogs, rabbits, ducks, salamanders, beaver and, most recently, a bobcat.
A fence prevents most wildlife from getting onto Quarry Road, although there are two “jump outs” for those who do find themselves on pavement and need escape.
“There has been little, if any, roadkill on this section of the road,” Hawke said.
Drivers can avoid hitting animals with these safety tips:
*Slow down, especially during fall and winter and in the hours just before, during and after dusk and dawn.
*Pay attention to deer crossing and related signs.
*Be especially cautious on straightaways and on roads bordering woods or streams.
Fall isn’t the only time to be especially aware of animals.
January to March also is a high roadkill season for amphibians moving from uplands to breeding areas, said Hawke, the county planner. In spring, wildlife are busy looking for mates and, later, moving around with their young.
So, what is done with animals that are killed on roadways?
In Snohomish County and most places, maintenance crews take carcasses and bury them at designated disposal sites. Elsewhere in the state, carcasses are composted, and in some cases freshly killed animals have been donated to local Indian tribes.
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