La prevenzione degli incidenti stradali provocati da Capriolo (Capreolus capreolus)

The prevention of accidents caused by roe deers (Capreolus capreolus) The collisions between roe deers and motor vehicles are often unavoidable, as they originate from unforeseen situations, which catch drivers unprepared. These risky situations are caused by the behavior of animals and generally by the high speed of drivers. The Department of Agricultural Economics and Engineering of the Agricultural Faculty of Bologna University has been taking care of this issue for some years and has developed two research lines. The first one is based on monitoring a “high risk” artery route by means of “anti-game” reflectors. These latter, reflecting the lights of incoming cars, spook the deers when they try to cross the road. The second one concerns a patented system which stimulates at the same time the attention of both the driver and the deer. Results are reassuring: the use of reflectors has brought to a drastic decrease of accidents, while the first tests conducted on the patented system are giving good results.