Deer Strike Season Starts Early

This time last year, we were still seeing temps touching 90 in the Delaware Valley, believe it or not. This year, the chilly temps arrived (and managed to stick around), a bit earlier. Now, not being bona fide whitetail deer experts, we will refrain from declaring with absolute certainty that the cooler temps has somehow fast-tracked this year’s rutting season, but we will say that we are seeing a whole lot more deer carcasses on roadways throughout the area and the phone calls from unlucky drivers have started a little earlier this year than in previous years. All that said, we are still weeks away from peak rutting season. The food source for these critters will only decrease between now and then. Between the instinct to find a mate and the necessity to cover more ground in search of food, wacky deer become a very common sight on area roadways from now through early December.

We urge caution this time of year for a number of reasons. Apart from the hungry and amorous deer, there are wet leaves to contend with as well as a lot less daytime light. Shorter days, slick roads and chance meetings with whitetails account for a lot of our estimates in the fall months. We recommend having your brakes and tire tread depth checked by any one of the great auto service shops in our area if you have concerns about your vehicle’s ability to stop safely with a moment’s notice.