STRANGE BUT TRUE: Acorn Crop May Influence Deer Hits
11/3/2010 9:20:34 PM
A nutty theory has been put out there by the Ohio Division of Wildlife: a bumper crop of acorns in Ohio woods this year could be keeping deer from roaming to seek food, meaning a potential decrease in deer-car collisions.
"When you've got acorns everywhere, there is less movement," Mike Tonkovich, a biologist with the Ohio Division of Wildlife, told the Columbus Dispatch. "We may see a small decrease in deer-car crashes this year because of the decrease in movement."
Here's the heart of the acorn theory: Last year, there were 25,146 deer-car crashes in Ohio that caused around $75.8 million in damage, and "you couldn't buy an acorn in the woods in Southeast Ohio last year," Tonkovich said.
Now, the Division of Wildlife says Ohio's oak trees are producing 33 percent more acorns than last year, but only time will tell if the number of deer collisions will drop or if this theory is simply nuts.
"When you've got acorns everywhere, there is less movement," Mike Tonkovich, a biologist with the Ohio Division of Wildlife, told the Columbus Dispatch. "We may see a small decrease in deer-car crashes this year because of the decrease in movement."
Here's the heart of the acorn theory: Last year, there were 25,146 deer-car crashes in Ohio that caused around $75.8 million in damage, and "you couldn't buy an acorn in the woods in Southeast Ohio last year," Tonkovich said.
Now, the Division of Wildlife says Ohio's oak trees are producing 33 percent more acorns than last year, but only time will tell if the number of deer collisions will drop or if this theory is simply nuts.