Saving Wild Lives: Why Responsible Driving Practice Matter

April 30, 2025 Written by Alyce Bender

A female grizzly in Grand Teton National Park (not 399) looks to cross US Highway 191 late in the afternoon. Due to the park’s “Bear Brigade,” traffic was being monitored and stopped to assist in this particular situation, but they cannot be there for all crossings at all times of day.

In October of 2024, international news headlines broke with the news that Grizzly 399, Queen of the Tetons, and widely considered to be the most famous grizzly in the world, had died due to being struck by a vehicle. She was 28 years old and had born 22 cubs, many of them raised within roadside corridors and lightly developed areas as human usage of these areas gave her and her offspring protection from the worst of the male boar bears.

Photographers and millions of visitors from around the world visited Grand Teton National Park each year, spring through fall, in hopes of catching sight of her. In 2007, due to the number of visitors who came to the park to see the bears was so high, the Grand Teton Wildlife Brigade, aka “Bear Brigade,” was created to help manage visitor-wildlife interactions; otherwise known as managing people’s behavior around wildlife, predominantly bears and ensuring that “bear-jams” did not cause safety or environmental issues within the park.

But 399 and Grand Teton are not the only place that wildlife, wildlife viewing/photography and vehicles become at odds with each other.

An estimated 1 to 2 million large animals are struck by vehicles each year in the United States alone according to the Federal Highways Administration. This does not take into account the additional millions of smaller animals such as reptiles, amphibians, or even small mammals that are killed or the estimated 340 million birds that are struck down due to vehicle strike on U.S. roads annually.

Do you see them?! A small herd of desert bighorn sheep rams stand in the blind edge of a corner on a rural Nevada highway frequently traveled at high speeds in the early morning by state park visitors, off-road enthusiasts, and Lake Mead National Recreation Area users.

Over 21 federally listed threatened or endangered animal species in the United States have road mortality listed among their major threats to survival of the species and include everything from mammals such as the Florida panther to reptiles such as the desert tortoise and amphibians such as the Californian tiger salamander.

With all of this said, there are things that we can do as drivers to help mitigate the potential of having a wildlife-vehicle accident. It starts by modifying our driving behavior as best we can and making decisions with the knowledge that certain roads traverse certain types of habitats with species that are active during certain times of the day.

Things like:

               Deer are typically found in forested, scrub, or crop land areas and are most active between 4pm-12am and 5am-9am, especially in spring and fall when they are on the move during migration, rut, and during hunting season.

               Reptiles such as snakes and lizards are frequently found thermoregulating on pavements in the spring, on sunny, warm days and after periods of precipitation. Those in desert areas can frequently be found after dark on pavements taking advantage of the warm ground as the air starts to cool again. It is a very dangerous time for them as drivers rarely watch for or are willing to take evasive action for snakes, lizards, or turtles.

A desert bighorn sheep ewe nurses her lamb in the middle of a state park road. Thankfully, as a park road and not a highway, drivers are typically using slower speeds and are more aware.

 Bird-vehicle collisions are harder to predict due to the multitude of factors but areas along migration routes during spring and fall, particularly during early morning and evening hours, have higher incidences of vehicle induced mortality. Dusk and pre-dawn hours are also times when vehicle traffic is still high and owls start hunting as well, often resulting in collisions if they are using roadside habitat as hunting grounds. Waterfowl are susceptible when weather conditions push their flight patterns near bodies of water or feeding grounds into traffic as well as when they are breeding and their young are still flightless. Think of the ducklings crossing highways that sometimes make state or local news in areas around the world.

By being aware of when (both season and time of day) we are driving, we can better prepare for potential wildlife we might encounter. Personally, in situations where I can, I try to avoid driving in forested areas with known deer populations after dark, planning my travel itineraries to arrive at my lodging before sunset. If I do plan a sunset photography session, I try to stay close to that spot. Same goes for where I seek accommodations in proximity to sunrise locations. If I do have to drive after dark or before sunrise, I try to stay in more urban areas and utilize larger highways rather than byways where possible. And I always give myself extra time so I can slow down as needed.

While we should all be following the speed limits per law, some areas implement lower speeds after dark due to the increase in potential road crossing by wildlife. Ensure you know and follow these precautions. Additionally, as I alluded to above, if having to drive after dark, consider slowing to help give yourself and wildlife extra time should you both decide to cross the same part of the woods at the same time.

In the late evening hours, just before full sunset, a large bull elk steps into the road in front of traffic. Taken at 8000 ISO, most vehicles already had their lights on. Ensuring proper driving habits, such as turning headlights on at dusk and paying attention to wildlife crossing signs can help save wildlife around roadways.

As nature photographers, we are frequently out before the sun has come up and after it has gone down, so we are frequently some of the last pulling into town at night. Let’s make sure that we do all we can to help keep our wildlife alive at all times.

Bonus Tip – If you come across wildlife close to the road that could pose a quick danger to oncoming traffic, consider giving them a warning buy temporarily flicking your hazards on for a few flashes before turning them off again.

A red fox stands in the middle of the road hoping the vehicle will slow and offer a food handout. Situations where wildlife has become habituated to humans leaving food sources along roadways only increases the chances of those habituated individuals becoming victims of vehicle strikes. Don’t litter, even items that are considered biodegradable such as fruit peels or pits as they can attract animals to roadsides in hopes of scoring an easy meal.