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Call for questions: ROAD KILL (Patreon)

Published:
2023-09-26 23:23:50
Imported:
2026-06

Content

Someone studies road kill ecology? Someone does. 

And we've waited for TWO YEAAARS to  get this guy on the show so ask your questions below about anything related to road kill I'm trusting you to come up with some good ones. 

(Ps: I was hit by a car at the age of 12 and rolled up onto the hood then fell to the ground then when the fire department and EMTs showed up,  I apologized for them having to make the trip, and they were like "uhhh, you just got hit by a car this is our job." I think about that a lot. 

Anyway: road kill! 

Looking both ways,

Ward

Comments

EdNoGG

What do they do in Florida with the gators?

Francesca Huggins

Is it true that when an armadillo becomes roadkill they can EXPLODE if they get hit again?

RJ Doidge

So. Let’s say I come across an animal that seems freshly hit. Is there a place to take it to find out if it’s safe to consume, rather than it going to waste?

Savannah McGuire

Why does it seem opossums get hit more often in their range?

Quincey Robisheaux

I've seen a whole cow as roadkill. Just wanted to share that.

Moss

I used to pick up roadkill and skin it for the fur in my younger days, one angry neighbor once told me I was going to get diseases! Is this true? Could I get diseases? I did wear gloves....

Anna Thompson

Is it better to call local folks to deal with road kill or let nature take care of it? Assuming it's not in someone's yard or blocking the traffic flow

corvidthey

Are there health reasons to not eat road kill?

Kendall M

Do smaller animals feel pain when they get hit or is it instant? When I was still learning to drive I accidentally hit a baby raccoon and I still think about it from time to time.

Anna Thompson

What's the weirdest animal you've seen (or heard of being) as roadkill

Kasey Crouse

FTQA! Why do I see more hbc(hit-by-car) in the fall for mammals and so many birds in June? I drive late at night for my commute and I see a lot of critters in general.

Savannah McGuire

Legality/laws of eating roadkill in different states?

BigHighFive

What animals are killed the most on roads? Is it true that it’s illegal to kill certain birds that are scavengers so that they keep scavenging road kill? What % of the population eats roadkill? What animals cause the most damage to vehicles? What animals or insects have benefitted the most from the meteoric rise in automobiles and assumed increase in animals killed by automobiles?

Anastasia Press

Do different states/countries have different policies related to road kill?

Chelsea

Do those wildlife bridges actually work or is it all optics?

Matt Ceccato

What is the most common genus of animal that is the victim of roadkill?

Kevin Parichan

How large does an animal need to be before it's considered road kill?

Hannah Thorpe

How often do carrion-eating birds like eagles and vultures get hit by vehicles?

L. Wink

Can he/she/they talk about places that encourage killing pest species?

Becky Wilkinson

When I was a kid my dad wanted to build a road kill platform in the woods behind our house that would have a pulley system that would allow him to lower it and put road kill on it and then raise it again. The point being that birds of prey like vultures would come and eat the road kill. He never actually did it but I always wondered (1) if this would work to attract birds of prey and (2) is it illegal to pick up road kill? Also, besides that your neighbors might hate you and you could catch a road kill disease, is this a bad idea?

Shealyn Wippert

Can roadkill be taxidermied to continue to look like roadkill but forever?

Rachael Jay

What are the best things that an individual can do when we spot a wild animal crossing the road to prevent them from getting hit? (i.e. a turtle or a baby animal)

Alannah Wood

Australia related so I'm not sure if it can be answered but when you approach a kangaroo on the side of the road, instead of jumping AWAY from the road they will jump across it into the car instead of what I would presume is a big scary thing.... WHY! Also has there been any technology made to discourage animals from roads? Other than fences or large infrastructure like bridges for them to cross?

Paul Smith

Have animal overpasses made a difference in reducing the amount of roadkill?

Cian verbridge

How has road kill affected animal behavior. Have some animals started to avoid roads while others use it for food.

Savannah McGuire

Unusual animals that eat roadkill. Example- cottonmouths and box turtles (I've seen 2 different box turtles eating roadkill)

Magnapinna

Can you study or learn anything about the critters present in an area by watching what feeds on it or what ends up as roadkill in the first place?

Natalie Rousseau

What would happen if we just left the carcasses on the side of the road forever? Would we eventually have massive burial mounds on all sides of every roadway?

Becky Wilkinson

How do those wildlife bridges over highways work? How do the animals figure out to use it instead of crossing the highway?

Elizabeth Merow

During the pandemic, I was seeing a lot less roadkill (in CT) on my commute due to what I assumed was less vehicles on the roads. Is there data from research projects or community science to support this?

Cian verbridge

As a biology student I just learned about the Tasmania reducing the speed limit to protect devils and it ended up reducing road kill by 50%. Is road kill a consideration for speed limit anywhere else.

Maren Prophit

Pre automobile , were there any significant statistics of road kill? Carriage kill perhaps? Or were train accidents with critters common?

Jenna Breiner

I was taught in drivers ed that if there’s a small animal on a busy road to just hit it so that you don’t cause a crash. I think that’s kind of horrible. Maybe that’s just an Ohio thing. What are the safest ways to go about NOT killing an animal in the road??

Gregor

😎

Carlos Alvarez

And adding to this, what are the dangers or is there any kind of hidden nutritional benefit?

Jess Bauzá de García

I, too, have been hit by a car and promptly apologized to emergency services! Philly drivers are no joke.

Maren Prophit

Curious about locomotive-kill as well : I was once on a train in France and the dead of winter and there was the sound of shattering glass under the tracks. The train slowed and said that there had been an impact of some kind, and my friend with me was certain we hit a deer given the region and time of day. My question is, would an animal hit by a train make that sound? Or would anything have made sense to make that sound? I think about it a lot

Gregor

Favorite roadkill recipes?

Kai Kishimoto

What are the laws around picking up roadkill for taxidermy?

Jess Bauzá de García

Oops, too quick with the enter! My question is Is it okay to take roadkill to be processed like you would take a hunted animal? I have some jewelry made with animal bones, and I've always wondered how the crafters went about the process of...processing the animals.

Destiny Lam

Who gets the road kill off of the road? Do we just wait for it to get crushed by cars and washed away by rain???

Allison Menard

To me roadkill skunk smells exactly like pot. Pothead perhaps?

Misfit

Is road kill exclusively related to modern cars? Was road kill an issue before cars were invented?

ConnieConnieBoBonnie

My grandpa was a farmer in rural Kentucky. Once he ran over a rabbit on the way to church and then picked it up on the way home. My grandma cooked it up for supper. He argued that it was safe because it was winter and he only ran over the head. We were also having the rabbits my dad had hunted that morning, so chances are I probably ate roadkill. We were all fine. Hooray! How prevalent is consuming roadkill? What precautions should one take if they had their heart set on consuming roadkill?

Dave Cannon

Whats the smallest road kill?

ConnieConnieBoBonnie

I have a friend who would pick up deer and tan the hides. Any reason not to do this? I think she ended up befriending the road crews that cleaned up roadkill and they’d let her have them.

Zed Shirogane

Has there been a noticeable difference in roadkill occurrence before, during, and after covid restrictions were implemented? I can only assume animals that got used to the lack of cars during the pandemic had a rough time when people got back to traveling.

Allison Menard

Was there an overpopulation of squirrels in 2018 (particularly in NH?) Or were squirrels just extra stupid that year? I recall counting 39 dead squirrels on my 6 mile drive to work.

Jen

Why was it made illegal to harvest road kill for personal consumption? How did insurance companies play into the decision?

Shealyn Wippert

Actually yes! Do roadkill eaters have super guts? Are you guys okay?

Kari Henke

As a civil engineer in the US I’m unaware of any considerations of roadkill being made when determining speed limits! I work mostly in urban and suburban areas though, so there’s a chance in more rural areas they do

Chris Curious

Hey, if it's fresh and in good shape...

Meg Kelly

Kinda a question and kinda horrible, but one time my moms 2008 silver honda minivan had 4 squirrels jump onto / in front of it in one day. Does light reflecting off vehicles or things influence animals abilities to register what’s going on / what to do etc etc ?????

Elta Sparks

Is it safe to eat roadkill like in the movies? Lol

Olivia

First time question asker here! What happens when an animal is picked up that’s clearly a pet (has a collar or tag)? Is the family contacted?

Melanie Yakemovic 🦄

I also got hit by a car (well, actually a pickup truck), rolled up the hood, over the windshield and then onto the ground when I was a teen. Anyways, my question: when is roadkill ok to eat? Do people actually do this? And how would you cook it?

Kayla Pilcher

How in the world does one become a roadkill expert 🫢

Betsy Hoffmeister

Along the same lines, what is the preferred method for bringing home and cleaning a skeleton; and, what is the best way to clean up a dead skunk? we stayed in an air bnb that was eau de dead skunk a la road nearby, and it really did not enhance the experience.

Annmarie Everhart

Will natural selection eventually cause fewer animals to become roadkill?

Cassie

As a fellow road kill biologist who focuses on an endangered amphibian species, super excited for this one! After a major wildfire in my area, I have seen an increase of amphibian roadkill, as well as new roadkill locations. Have you seen or heard the same?

Sydonie S.

What happens to the road kill when it gets picked up?

Holly Giorgio-Dundon

Let’s talk wildlife bridges: how effective are they at minimizing road kill? Who decides where they go? Do they consult ecologists for migration routes?

Emily Staw-fur

Why do animals wait until you're so close to run across the road especially at night?

Patricia Brewster

Being a falconer I love fresh road kill for my hawk. For me if it’s fresh I’ll breast out a pheasant or check out a deer. I had a fight with a bald eagle once for a jackrabbit! I only took a hind quarter and then threw the rest in the field so all the scavengers wouldn’t get hit by cars and enjoy a nice breakfast. Wondering how many become roadkill when feasting on other roadkill?

Average_pi

Why do some crazy birds fly in front of my car, but somehow not get hit? How do cars hitting bugs effect their populations?

Tim McCollow

What species of animals can get run over by tires and still walk away?

Aurora Cullen

Why don’t we see dead insects on windshields anymore? And do wildlife corridors help decrease the number of animal deaths by roadkill?

Tim McCollow

Whatbis the largest road kill ever recorded? Elephant? Polar bear? Elephant seal ???

Isabelle Newman

Should you stop to look for baby possums in a mommy possum pouch if you see a dead one

Emily Staw-fur

What kind of statistics can be derived by incident rates of road kill in an area besides maybe animal population and number of vehicles?

Isabelle Newman

how can we protect animals from being killed on the road? what resources are there/what can we do to support

Amanda Colyer

What is the strangest roadkill law on the books?

Leon Taylor

It talks about Road Kill and eating it as well as other aspects of Georgia ecology.

Emily Staw-fur

In highschool we had to read Grapes of Wrath and I remember the one chapter about the turtle trying to cross the road and a car intentionally swerves to hit it. That launched us into a discussion about the symbolism of this and it was a horrible discussion. Anyway, do people actually hit some animals on purpose?

Between Dumplings

My cousin is legally blind, she says the advent of silent electric cars are a mortal threat to vision impaired, she cannot hear them coming. I assume it may be true for animals, too? True story: my friend was in Home Depot and the character who ambled up to her to chat was wearing a road kill hat, I think it was a turtle shell top and racoon tail or some such. (is this really a thing?) She noticed he was, um, very interested in conversation and that he was buying a chest freezer....she suddenly found another open register. Also true: it was many years before young me could not cry when I saw something dead on the side of the road.

Emily Staw-fur

Can you talk about the salt used for removing snow and ice possibly luring animals to the road? Is this actually true?

Deborah L Blanton

Why do people hit animals? I know sometimes, in my experience rarely, animals dart in front of the car. But I’ve hit a bird once for that reason. Why don’t people slow down and brake when they see an animal? And for heaven’s sake, why do people hit TURTLES??? 😡

jen baker

Are raccoons and squirrels the top victims? I drive from Illinois to Alabama in 1 day and saw no less than 10 raccoons on the side of the road.

jen baker

Where does road kill go when it is removed by the city or state?

jen baker

Why do squirrels play chicken with cars?

Katie Murray

Does the roadkill ever get so stuck to the road that you have to use special equipment or chemicals to get it off? How does that work?

Abigail MacKinnon

I think about the black squirrel theory often, where black squirrels stand out against the grey roads so they are less likely to be hit, so they have a higher percentage of black then expect. Are there other animals we see impacted in the same way?

River Canina

Is it ever safe to eat roadkill?

The Farming Linguist

What’s the best way to get skunk smell off the undercarriage of your car? I was so blinded by cars driving opposite with their extremely bright headlights that I didn’t see the smelly fella until it was too late! He met his fate underneath my car, and it stank for a loooooong time.

Katie Murray

Are there any companies that use roadkill for something (as opposed to just putting it in a landfill)?

Chandler Witherington

When my husband and I visited Tasmania one of the guides on a tour we went on told us about the super simple way they use motion sensing lights and it’s drastically reduced the amount of roadkill that happens there. Do you know anything about this and if so could you explain more ? Is this something we could do more places that could help?

Dicken Crane

I was hit by a motorcycle going about 50 on my bicycle. I ended up on the motorcycle skidding down the highway watching the guy on the motorcycle cartwheeling through the roadside weeds. he had a helmet and leather jacket, I didn't even have a shirt. We both survived.

Courtney Horowitz

This may technically be a bird question, but why do geese and other birds walk across the road and get hit when they could very easily just fly and not die?

Renee Sparkes

First time question asker. In Canada we have long stretches of highways with moose fences because moose are THE WORST kind of road kill (they run along both sides of the highway with one way gates in them so highway roaming moose can become woodland moose but can’t revert to highway life). Do we know the efficacy of these fences and do they have an effect on the migration patterns of moose?

Dicken Crane

Okay that wasn't a question. It's the amphibians I worry about the most. Who, and how can we help them get across the road

Peta Luck

Why don't people remove road kill to the side of the road? That way there'd be less risk of hitting scavengers *sighs* no, it's not a question but I feel better now. I hope you feel better too Dad Ward :)

UltraCheese

How likely am I, statistically, to hit an animal?

Anna Dye

How many states have roadkill permits? (I’m from montana and know it’s legal here, but where else?)

Sharon Rietveld

I remember hearing a long time ago that most people are psychopaths. The reason why is because one study showed that if a fake roadkill was out on the very edge of the road, most people would go out of their way to run it over. Was this a real study? Was this true?

Tamarys

Has the implementation of underpasses been an effective way to reduce roadkill? I know in Florida we have them to keep panthers and other wildlife out of the roads but not sure if they’re making any noticeable impacts!

Peta Luck

Yikes. I know here in Australia people go after you when you're cycling, does that count?!

Specs Owl

I've heard about hedgehogs adapting to the danger presented by cars, by running instead of rolling up in a ball. Is that then affecting their survival rate when encountering their natural predators?

Specs Owl

What's your favourite song about roadkill, and why is it Dead Skunk by Loudon Wainwright III?

Specs Owl

How can you tell exactly what's happened to an animal by looking at it at the side of the road? I would have assumed that if an animal has gone under the wheel, there would be a mess left behind, but one day I very sadly hit a female blackcap who flew in front of my car, and she went under the wheel, but then when I went to pick her up, she looked perfect, like she'd just flown into a window or something.

Jason Lowenthal

Whose job is it to pick up/remove road kill? And is there some sort of road kill watch-folk who are reporting this? Should there be something in Google Maps/Waze like when people report on accidents or speed traps, but instead it's "three dead deer"?

Rozelyn Hesby

Please tell me no one really eats found road kill (seriously, this thought plagues me more often than I care to admit) 😣 If (VERY strong if) someone did, there are major health concerns with that right?!

Greg Walloch

One time in Venice, CA I saw a car speeding down the street toward a little bird. I yelled, "Oh no, fly away little bird." The bird did not fly away... Why don't the little animals get out the way? ☹️

Rozelyn Hesby

Not 100% but I’m pretty sure they address this in the squirrel episode from this past summer

Sharon Rietveld

Motorcycling or bicycling? Lol jk jk 😜

David Taffner

I moved to Tennessee about 30 years ago. A memory I have that I’ve not confirmed is that around that time, the state passed a law that it was ok for people to take home (presumably to eat) any non-human animal they found dead on the road. What are the legalities of road kill? Does Michigan where I live now have any specific legislation?

Picklepot

Bald Eagles-As a kid in Iowa, I never saw eagles. Now, they are everywhere. Like Turkey Vultures, they are frequently found eating road kill deer. Is this considered an evolution in eagles or just an adaptation?

Emma Dalrymple

So, there were some kids in my hs that picked up a deer on the side of the road and… threw it in the back of my parked minivan (one seat was removed and my friend sitting on the floor had the dead deer thrown on them). When my other friend pulled it out they grabbed it to PUT IT IN THEIR TRUCK AGAIN. So, we got their plates and told the cops. We left to vacuum the deer hair out of the car carpet and saw flashing police lights on our way to do so.. it was the kids 🫢 so they had us answer some questions and someone came to take pictures of my car floor. I heard the guys had to go to court and it messed with their future as Mormon missionaries lol probably for the best. I’ll never forget the smell and their sadistic cackles 🙃 that deer was left where those kids were pulled over though, I passed it on my way home from school everyday for at *least* a week. Why didn’t someone dispose of the carcass right away?

Sarah Morcom

First time question asker! Do wildlife bridges actually work? We have a lot in Australia and they vary from a huge wide bridge which is just an extension of the forest and has barricades to avoid animals falling off to a skinny rope bridge suspended between two poles. I've always wondered if those rope bridges have a noticeable improvement of wildlife ability to cross the road.

James Jakes

I feel like there's always more roadkill in the bike lane. Is this my imagination? If not, why is that so?

Joyclyn Vincent

Seconded! I've never seen wildlife use these bridges but that doesn't mean they don't...

Ren

I saw studies about wolf re-introduction in WI and MI and how wolves like to follow linear paths, so deer strikes have gone down because the deer learn to avoid the roads because the wolves like using the roads. Are there other kinds of relationships like this?? It's so cool

Chase Penix

Have you been to the Road Kill Festival in WV?

Darren Bush

Same. Especially the giant ones in elk country in Wyoming.

Darren Bush

I haven't eaten road kill, but I have harvested porcupine quills for artistic purposes. Even though they're dead I still feel bad, but I guess they wouldn't really care.

Jada Lynn

Not a question but a great story. When I was in middle school I had a friend who had just moved to town. In the phone book her new phone number got mixed up with the number to call when you hit an animal on the highway. Her family got a lot of very confusing phone calls.

Madeline DLC

Hi Alie, it’s Maddie! Does roadkill act like bait for predator death traps kind of like the La Brea tar pits?

Jada Lynn

What's the most dangerous animal to hit on a highway? I live in an area with Bison, and they are very scary to come across on the road at night.

Fiorelily

Are moose as dangerous to hit as I've heard? I've heard that if you hit a moose at speed, insta-death for car ppl.

Cynthia Cinnabar

After all the talk about how EVs being heavier than ICE-mobiles means that they spew more pollution from tire particles (which I had no idea was a thing before this topic entered the public discourse), I was wondering whether roadkill's being roadkilled has an effect on the animals that eat it. Is there any chance that these tire pollutants could build up in scavengers, enter the food chain, cause problems like (other) chemical pollutants have done? Or are there other issues that even my alarmist mind can't imagine?

John Mitchell

Not to be morbid, but can it be consumed by humans? Is it legal? Would state game laws apply? If legal, how would one tell if the remains were safe to eat?

Julie Bender

Hello Alie! It’s Julie Bender, first time question asker. Could you please ask: is roadkill really safe to eat? If so, how can you tell?!?

Kieran H

Why do poor opossums get hit by cars so much? Are they just too slow and/or is it because they’re out during the night? Same with raccoons?

Jordan Irons

Is there a particular area of the US that is most susceptible to road kill, where people hit the animals more?

Mara Schoner

Do municipalities / road engineers (wait is that an ology?) ever take into consideration the "highways" of different species so as to reduce the chances of cars hitting them?

Holly Cole

If roadkill is determined as safe to eat, are there ( or could there be) concerted efforts to get roadkill to wolf, conservation centers or other places where wildlife might benefit?

taylor

Roadkill makes me so darn sad every single time I see it. Are there certain initiatives or programs that aim to help alleviate the toll of our roads on wildlife? I’ve seen wildlife bridges and heard they work, and love to hear more.

Heather Moore

What road kill makes the best pizza topping [beyond deer]? I imagine it would be raccoon. [To the raised eyes in the chat: growing up, road kill pizza wasn't uncommon in the rural area I lived. Raccoon was my favorite as a sausage... This was about 20 years ago]

Karen Tam

What’s the weirdest roadkill encounter you’ve ever had??

Matt Hirschl

What are some critters that survive solely because of road kill?

ScienceInTheArt

Is road kill data used to supplement animal population and movement patterns?

Karen Hickey

Hi Allie, it's Karen. First time question for me. I'm feeling badly for the critters and wondering if most of them die instantly or do they suffer while baking in the sun or freezing to death? Hoping it's fast and painless for the vast majority.

Melanie Lee

Have you studied any relationship between wildlife crossings and roadkill amounts decreasing/increasing? Hoping we can have a beacon of hope for all our creature friends to not become roadkill!

Elizabeth Davis

I would like to know why it is that the ears always seem to survive the hit. I live in a rural area & see a lot of road kill on a daily basis. So often the animal is smooshed but the ears are still sticking straight up! Am I a bad person for giggling and making, "What?!" jokes as I drive by? Probably... what?!

Liv

are more animals hit by cars? i always think about how so many people complain about “pest” animals (my least favourite term EVER) as we increase the amount of greenspace that we’re using up for homes and other buildings… does this translate to hits? i feel like i see more and more all the time

Kellie Due

First time questioner. I work for a pet crematory and we sometimes cremate wildlife that good samaritans drop off at vet clinics. I've tried to look up my state/county laws about picking up road kill but am still unsure. Do you think we can legally pick up road kill to be cremated and scattered?

Margot Louis

How much does animal intelligence play into likelihood of getting hit by a car? I made my friends dress up like road kill for Halloween one year, and my friend wanted to be a fox. I thought this was stupid because I said “how often do you ever see a fox as road kill? They’re too smart to get hit by a car” and I’ll be damned one day I saw a dead fox on the side of the road :( but I dressed up as a raccoon and they’re pretty smart……..

Margot Louis

Did you always know you wanted to be a roadkill ecologist? Did you like to play with dead animals as a child? Were your parents ever concerned about you?

Spencer J

What was the first recorded instance of a vehicle-animal collision being documented for insurance purposes? Did such a concept exist before cars (like if someone else's horses your horses, or if a snake bit them?)

Yuri

Does road kill help fill the ecological niche we've punched a hole in with driving away (ha ha) other predators that would leave kill for scavengers?

Margot Louis

I know people in rural communities in the US eat road kill. Are there other people outside of this demographic that eat road kill in the US or elsewhere?

Margot Louis

Also curious HOW road kill is safe to eat?? I want to try it someday. I live in a big city and I wouldn’t eat a donut I dropped anywhere outside of my home, let alone a dead animal that’s eaten god knows what. But is there a way to tell if it’s unsafe out in the country?

Margot Louis

Also, if an animal has ingested something toxic or poison, is that enough alone to make me sick?

Kieran H

When you see a deer or other roadkill on the side of the road, did they actually land there, or did someone move them?

Margot Louis

Have there been wolf strikes?

Keely Chavez

are there species who scavenge who are endangered or at risk due to trying to eat roadkill? I know our ravens and coyotes are doing okay here in NM, but I worry about other threatened species who can't resist the rot??

Margot Louis

Wow fork those guys!!!! That’s a terrible thing to do to someone. Was your friend ok?? Was your car ok??

Margot Louis

They’re scavengers! They hunt too but most of their food is already dead

the ren you know

Is there any hope that "survival of the fittest" will create animals that know how to not get hit by cars?? Whenever I see roadkill I try to overcome my sadness by hypothesizing: well maybe that was a dumb squirrel and now all the other squirrels can learn from this...

Tessa

What is the percentage of people that eat roadkill and survive?

Olivier Calas

Many tunnels have been built along busy highways/roads to allow local animals to cross safely and they seem to work fairly well. Are there plans in the US to build more of these ‘safe passages’ in key locations?

Julie Scott

I used teach a middle school forensics class, so I would stop to look at road kill in order to collect different maggot stages, thus leading my boyfriend to refer to me fondly as his "little maggot collector". But I digress. How does road kill ecology support other fields of research such as medical or forensics fields?

Matthew Thompson

I've heard it's better to hit a deer than to be behind the vehicle that hits the deer. Because maybe the deer flips over the first car and lands right on the second? Idk but one time a girlfriend ran over a deer in the road and the car jumped. We kept driving. The next morning, a dog was chewing...something...off the tailpipe.

Paulina Tarr

How does studying roadkill help us understand changes in our climate? Are more species being killed because of habitat destruction and/or temperature changes?

Paulina Tarr

Also - I LOVE THE BREAK FOR MOOSE BUMPER STICKERS (I’m from NH).

Emma Dalrymple

Friend was okay, she’s tough! Car just needed a clean. We were okay but they were definitely planning on doing it to someone else..

Katie Hultman

I AM SO EXCITED FOR THIS EPISODE.

Shealyn Wippert

Cats.. why do they wait until you are right in front of them and then BOLT like they are trying to get hit? I get birds (I guess) they are adrenaline junkies and want to catch that knarly air wave 🌊 but cats, come on guys, why? Don't even get me started on turkeys and chickens 🙄 f*#kin MOOVVEE

Guido

Are wildlife crossings really effective at avoiding road kills and facilitating animal migration? How can an animal know that it should not cross the road at a dangerous point because there is a wildlife crossing 1 Km from there?

Euan Munro

I just here for the eating roadkill stories 🍿

rikspieks

Is the effect on insects measurable and... so how bad is it for insects?

Katie Stalder

As an ER vet tech, most if not all of the cats who went face first into a car were intact males. One track mind was my guess! Turkeys are all kinds of weird (see turkey funeral circle) and chickens, mine don’t cross the road 🤷🏻‍♀️

Naomi Jane

I don't have any questions this time. But, if you could put a content warning up for any pet trauma Alie that would be so appreciated 🙏🏻

Alena Litin

How do the animals know to cross the street right where the “crossing” signs are? 😆 but seriously, is there any meaning behind where these signs are placed along a road if the animal it is warning about is found in the entire area?

Katie Stalder

First time question asker here! What’s going on with the spread of disease due to roadkill? I’m guessing sick or compromised animals are more likely to get hit, then bacteria and viruses are just freely available to the environment and other wildlife… Also, what’s the best movie about roadkill and why is it 1998 All The Little Animals staring Christian Bale?

Brenna Pixley

We had a “roadkill cafe” in my hometown for a bit, I don’t think it actually served roadkill. But really how do I get on the roadkill number for fresh accidents?

Britt Carp

Why do squirrels do the fake out thing where they start to cross the road, and then panic in indecision and basically just dance in the middle of the road? I wish they would just keep going!

Erin Burbidge

I live in Nova Scotia, Canada, and we apply salt brine to the roads ahead of winter storms. I've heard that some animals are attracted to the salt and that brings them close to roadsides. Does salting roads increase the risk of road kills?

Alyssa Ranker

I love roadkill!! As a kid I collected what fresh roadkill I could find to preserve skins, wings, and bones. Since Opossumology, I've been curious about how else roadkill can be used to study animals. By quantifying roadkill and also studying the commonly hit animals' behavior, are there solutions we can develop to prevent more roadkill deaths? What tips do you currently have to prevent hitting animals?? Do the strategies depend on the species?

Jess EyeballSurgeon

i know someone who would pick up roadkill and bring it home to the hawk that lives in his back yard. is this a thing??

Jess EyeballSurgeon

i meant to ask this on the squirrel episode- why the heck to squirrels jump in the road before the car, then fake like they're going one way, then go the other, resulting in me slamming on my brakes to not hit them??

Katie King

Do those nature-bridges I see in Europe help reduce road kill? If so, why don't we make more of them?

Jean Pompeo

Do trains also cause road kill? (Or would that be considered track kill?) Or do planes while taking off? Could the damage caused by a ship to ocean fauna also be considered a form of roadkill?

WiGeekMom

True story… my one of my wildlife ecology classes we had to design and carry out a research project. One of the teams was doing something on roadkill and would go out and spray paint carcasses on a stretch of highway. A week before the projects were due the highway department came out and cleared all of the carcasses. Their conclusion? Always coordinate with the people in charge. 😆

Jessamy Ritchie

So excited for this one! When is road kill still good for humans to eat? eg. deer Does it have to bled out at time of death?

zackever8

First time asker! Do those little horns people put beneath their front bumpers actually work? Do they deter deer from crossing or just harass animals with high pitched sound that we can’t hear?

San Juan Josie

Are eagles and hawks and owls considered sacred roadkill? Is collecting and keeping their feathers illegal?

Ashlee Dent

yay road kill! What are the best tools to keep in my car to safely remove animals from the road. I live in a very rural area where I often see animals who've met their end in the road and would like to help them have a little dignity and share their circle of life with the bugs and other animals without risking their demise too.

Alycia king

What’s the usual first insect that arrives to the roadside feast?

Dylan V

Why do deer still seem to just jump in front of cars? Will roadkill artificially select for deer that are afraid of cars and this won't be as much of a problem in the future?

Taylor Kendall

Dad Ward, welcome to the war on cars Living in LA would radicalize anybody I feel like.

Elie Zwiebel

My partner, Laura Bruner, has two questions: (1) Can we eat it? (2) Do those underpass things on byways and highways work to protect critters in their crossings?

Mary Elizabeth Parks

Is it true that sometimes animals will run out into the road in front of a car on purpose?? Do animals want to off themselves???

BeckytheSassySeagrassScientist

Scavengers like vultures etc MUST be so psyched about roadkill. Have we seen significant behavior changes? Is roadkill changing their evolution????

BeckytheSassySeagrassScientist

What happens to all the poor critters that get scraped off the road? Is there like a municipal giant pile-o-bones composting somewhere?

Becki Grady

In Alaska, moose get hit all the time. How do they get properly dressed with broken bones and organs squished?

Underwater Corvid

I grew up on a cattle farm in rural Iowa. If a cow died you would call the number for the county that also picks up roadkill and leave a check in a jar near the cow carcass for payment. I once had the misfortune of smelling the truck when it came. Is it true they take all the carcasses and refine them down for makeup, etc?

Jenna Congdon

What's the grossest/wildest thing you've ever had to pick up? And what do you do with them after removing them from the road?

Scarlet P

Whose job is it (if anyone's) to clean up roadkill. If you see some are you supposed to call someone? Is it different depending on the jurisdiction?

Scarlet P

When was the term "road kill" first used? When cars were first invented was there a sudden "epidemic" of road kill?

Lily

Where is the density of roadkill highest? I would think that more populated areas close to natural areas experience high roadkill rates, but then I would also think that local critter populations would learn to adapt, whereas more sparsely populated rural areas would experience low roadkill but the animals would also not necessarily adapt behaviorally? Or are more rural animals more fearful and more urban animals less??

Scarlet P

and if YOU are the one who created the road kill, is there a specific etiquette around what you are supposed to do? Does the size of the creature hit matter?

Scarlet P

Are there any statistics on how much road kill is "created" (what a terrible way to phrase that...) each year?

Lily

Does roadkill help us determine population health? Like when an animal is hit and we pull it to do an autopsy can we use that data to make determinations about species health (thinking nutrition, chronic wasting disease checks, etc)

Brittney Corrigan

Do we have any good data yet on the impact wildlife crossings over major highways have had on the numbers of incidents of road kill?

Nicole Kleinman

Is there something we should do when we see roadkill (besides feel sad) ?

Nicole Kleinman

Is there something we can do to help prevent roadkill? Are the environmental bridges actually helpful for this?

Sue Brooks

The amazing Mark Rober (sciuridaeobstacology expert) contends that "6% of drivers are cold-blooded rubber animal killers" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k-Fp7flAWMA). Are there corroborating data to show that many people purposely veer off the road to kill real animals?

Megan Younce

Thoughts on taxidermied roadkill? :)

Vincent Beck-Jones

Will you shamelessly plug the Wildlife Crossings Pilot Program which is aimed at reducing road kill and helping our furry friends survive by building wildlife crossings across roadways, please? :)

Jess Loeffler

As cars have been increasing in size, can we correlate that with increased road kill? Or is an increase in road kill due to encroachment into territory?

The Allusionist

oh gosh my mother was in a very bad car crash a few years ago and apologised for being a bother to the firefighters cutting her out of the wreckage, and said she could get herself home (with a broken pelvis!!) then worried because she had the coffee cups from work in the car so she could clean them at home and if she was hospitalised, her colleagues wouldn't have enough cups the next day.

The Allusionist

She was hospitalised - for six weeks - and her colleagues survived cupwise

Sarah Meaden

Best way to clean roadkill off your car?

Olivia Kimes

Is it safe to eat? Not talking about rodents

EricG

Do any of the commercial devices advertised as alerting deer of an oncoming car actually work?

RoadLesTravelled

While some drivers aim to create road kill, I presume other drivers (including me) actively try avoiding vehicular crittercide. Are some animals actually oblivious to roads? Why do squirrels think running pell mell IN THE DRIVING LANE is a good avoidance technique?

Charlotte Espeland

Oh I think about this daily! I hit one once because there were two doing the fake out and I didn’t see the second one while I was avoiding the first. 😞

Britt Carp

I wondered this too. My aunt got one for my mom as a gag gift one year becasue she’s hit so many squirrels 😬

Jani Rounds

What are you supposed to do with a roadkill skunk?? (poor skunk. Died on the road outside our house)

Kaeli Duffy

One time in high school Ag class a teacher was on the notion that when squirrels freeze up and don't get out of the road they essentially should be mowed down for the greater population of squirrels by enforcing survival of the smartest. Seems harsh. Does science have any backing? Are we making the squirrels smarter?

Kaeli Duffy

One time in high school Ag class a teacher was on the notion that when squirrels freeze up and don't get out of the road they essentially should be mowed down for the greater population of squirrels by enforcing survival of the smartest. Seems harsh. Does science have any backing? Are we making the squirrels smarter?

Coda Kirshbaum

How are wildlife rehabilitators modifying their release sites to prevent newly rewilded animals from becomming new victims of cars and habitat fragmentation? Im a highschool senior who had planned to do some research on this this year but my proposal got denied, so I’d love to see if anyone else is looking into it! :>

Tarable Adult

Are deers part moth for headlights? Why do they freeze in the middle of the road and how the heck do I get used to driving in a heavily deer populated area? Fixing to move to Michigan and I'm petrified for my new car.

Heidi & Qtip!

I super appreciate you using correct verbage for data...!

Allison Menard

Jesus, if that study is true, does that mean i'm one of the few non-psychopaths. I don't think i've ever hit roadkill.

Eliana Weiss

Do animals actually use things like wildlife bridges and corridors that aim to help them cross roads safely? Like how do animals know that a safe way across is there? Or is it just luck?

Natalie Welborn

So I know carcasses on the beach can and do explode; does this happen with roadkill too?

Rosario Neyra

Why is there so much roadkill this time of year (I'm in the UK, I dunno if it's the same elsewhere)? Is it because there are more young? More darkness? It makes me so sad when I'm driving into uni.

Rosario Neyra

What should we do if we see an animal in the road? We recently caused our first roadkill and it made me incredibly sad. It was a rabbit that just ran in the middle of the road and stopped. My partner tried to slow down and swerve, but the rabbit just seemed to run straight into the wheels!!

Katarzyna Pylat

Laws aside, I live in the UK so it is legal except for some species, I understand in the US this is state dependant. I LARP (Live action Roleplay) and we have to decorate our camps etc, I want animal skulls (maybe the occasional Fox tail) and living in the countryside there is plenty of roadkill I could potentially obtain this from. But how to? Like I don't have a big garden, or a workshop or even a garage to do this in and the house is out of the question for the sensibility of the remaining family members, partly why I could never consider pelts etc. Any advice? How to?

Elizabeth Wegener

Are there big issues with roadkill snowball effect? Animals get killed, then other animals feed on the carcas and they get killed, etc.

EricG

Installed radar tracking for squirrels? AI that can predict the zigs and zags that a squirrel will make before committing to one direction?

Maité Huerta

Do you have weirdly strong roadkill spotting powers? Do you freak out your friends and family by spotting all the roadkill ever and pointing it out? (asking for someone who does this (it’s me, I do this.))

Emily Staw-fur

Is road kill more common in cities or rural areas? I'm thinking even though there are more cars in a city, maybe there are less animals or they know to stay away from roads

Emily Staw-fur

Is road kill a thing at amusement parks? Do animals get hit by rollercoasters?

OtterKhaos (KrisP)

I JUST joined and missed the call for audio questions but want to go ahead and comment here in hopes this makes it into the 'sode buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuut *deep breath* I learned Tasmania is the "road kill capital of the world" :-( My hubby's from Tassie, so we go back as often as we can. I picked up this nugget of sad trivia at Bonorong on their tour last year. I wonder if Jarrah Dale might have an aside about this (from Dasyurology (TASMANIAN DEVILS)). I don't want to spoil the 'why' of the statistic for people here in case it does indeed get discussed in the episode <3

Sarah Piette

Does roadkill ever play an important ecological role such as population control or providing a food source for scavenging species? Or do the downsides always outweigh any possible benefits?

John

Is there an insect species that is specific/isolated to roadkill?

Marianne Thomas

Can't wait for this one! I chose roadkill as my (mini) dissertation subject at vet school & learned about roadkill surveys, comparing them to other means of population monitoring (latrines, anyone?). Also used found feathers for various parts of my wedding outfit, so I guess my question is How Goth Are You? And has studying roadkill made you more goth, or less?

Marianne Thomas

I need to tell you that yesterday I learned there's a state (can't remember which, TN?) where it's only illegal to pick up roadkill if you're behind on child support payments & I thought to myself Heck Yes

Marianne Thomas

When planes do it it's called Bird Strike! Which sounds incredibly victim-blamey if you ask me

Marianne Thomas

I don't know about turkeys & chickens, but male pheasants like to hang out in clearings during mating season in hopes some passing hen might notice them. Roads make excellent clearings

Aimee Bee

I had an odd older neighbor who would check all raccoon roadkill to see if they If they were male then he’d cut off/out (I’m not even sure) the penis (bone??) because he said raccoon penis bones were valuable. Is this true? Or is he a total whack job??

Marianne Thomas

Vet here. I'm sure they would be. We often get cats brought in to check for a microchip after someone has found them deceased. You're never far from another animal lover

Marianne Thomas

Dermestid beetles. Find them online. Keep them away from your cheese

Marianne Thomas

I sometimes think swallows use cars for flight training 😂

Marianne Thomas

Here in the UK I know a lot of people who will intentionally hit a rabbit with myxomatosis if it isn't safe to stop. Myxi is a horrible, slow death, so it's being done as euthanasia

Aimee Bee

Not that I know of but… you never know right?

Jessica Rudd

Oooo I have SO many questions about this!! I have to know, what is the weirdest animal that you know of that has been found as roadkill? Have there been any discoveries of new or rare species by finding them on the side of the road like this? Or species in places they shouldn’t be?

Jessica Rudd

Do the fences that run alongside some highways actually work for preventing wildlife from being harmed? Are the animals usually able to find their way to the tunnel/bridge to get across, or do they get stressed out and try to get through the fence? We have a few of these setups on major highways in Ontario, and they seem great, but I wonder what the impacts are on the animals

Jessica Rudd

And last one: I was in a Dollarama recently and saw some “auditory deterrents” that you stick to the bumper of your car. They claim that they produce a sound that warns the deer so they don’t run onto the road. Is there any solid science behind this that shows they work? Or is it film flam?

Silent H

A high school teacher of mine used to pick up fresh road kill to eat and to taxidermy - is this a (relatively) common practice? Was it even legal?

Pj anderer

Is there a most valuable observation for inaturalist roadkill (I belong to the project, so just want to maximize the usefulness of those observations cause they bum me out a lot).

Anti-Racist Arts (edited)

Comment edits

2026-09-06 05:00 I have to know about eating roadkill! Is it safe? Is it ethical?
2023-09-29 01:35

Zinc

how can we prevent roadkill? it absolutely breaks my heart that our ugly machines make such a tangible deathly impact. please please where does the evidence lead us and what should i be hounding my politicians to do?

Amy Zucker Morgenstern

1. What are the best prevention techniques? Should we be building animal bridges/tunnels, for example, and if so, how can we regular, non-roadkillologist citizens push for them? 2. Are there people who routinely (i.e., not because they are starving in a war zone) eat roadkill? Sign me AZM if you don't want to say the whole mouthful. If you do, Zucker rhymes with looker.

Ashley K.

This is an odd one, but I saw a tik tok about road kill and so many people were commenting that they get a "shiver" when they look at roadkill. Is that a thing? Huh? Why?

Gregor

Hunger pangs?

Cate Muenker

What’s the rule about taking dead animals off the road for food. Like in the winter, it must be pretty safe to grab frozen meat off the road, right? Is there a way to tell how long it’s been dead? Are there roadkill autopsy experts? Is it just a smell test? Do frogs count as roadkill? Driving home in the rain is always a mine field- who’s eating them all? , cos they seem to be gone by morning. Do scavengers like crows and Turkey vultures thrive in human populated areas because of all the roadkill?

Cate Muenker

Googling the uses of raccoon baculums….🤣

Cate Muenker

Ok Aimee. It IS a thing (it sort of looks like half a heart) : Known as the Texas Toothpick, it can also be used as a token of appreciation or love. Young suitors throughout the south have tied ribbons around raccoon baculum and given them to a love interest as a token of appreciation, and to help woo them.

Aimee Bee

So I had to do some research after JENN ‘squirrel’ ALVAREZ commented. I was flabbergasted to find that they sell for $10 a piece! People make earrings out of them. I kept thinking about Margaret Atwood’s Maddadam trilogy (one of my all time favorites btw!!). In that book a group of people call animal bones “smelly bones” 🤣 and in the comments of the sales of the bacculum they said “there was no smell at all” 🤮. I mean, Im súper witchy but the thought of having raccoon dong earrings is a bit much for me 🤷🏼‍♀️

joesyourmom

Oooooo!!! So exited for this!! I once tried to remove a coyote from a Saskatchewan highway and accidentally disemboweled it because its guts had froze to the highway. What is your weirdest encounter with a fallen friend?

joesyourmom

I once heard that the nature bridges create bottle necks for predation, is that true? If so is it enough to scare of creatures from those bridges ?

joesyourmom

Last one,💕 I remember that the beloved mountain lion of LA P-22 died in large part by a vehicle. How many large predators or just large fauna (bison, burrows, moose) get hit in the us? Is there any special thing that happens if its in a national park like yellowstone?

Kelsey Dix

First time question asker - What are the best (and most cost effective) ways to reduce roadkill? I work for a public works department and am leading a project researching roadkill "hot spots" in our county. I would love to advocate for efficient and economical infrastructure solutions to our upper management!

Pseudonym Jones IV

Back when I worked at a renaissance faire, I knew an artisan who worked in leather and animal bones. He got his bones by dragging roadkillings off the road, noting their location and date, and coming back for the bones after he figured most of their soft stuff was gone. I always wondered, but never got around to asking, how long he had to wait.

Pseudonym Jones IV

I recall that Tasmanian Devils fall prey to the perils of dining on roadkill. Are there any animals that are particularly adept at it?

Richard Pruen

Crows and magpies in the uk seem particularly good at getting motorway roadkill they seem to do so even in busy traffic without getting flattened themselves (most of the time anyway)

Sophia A

Hi! Long time listener, first time question asker. What’s the deal with eating roadkill? I know this happens in places like Alaska and there’s a a whole call list… Is it safe or unsafe? If it’s safe, why don’t we talk about it/do it more?

Mangomoosh

Depends how fresh it is! Very ethical.

Scott Hanley

Imagine the automobile designer in charge of keeping cars safer for the people and animals they hit?

Amelia Dark

Who cleans up road kill? - and how do I get some (I'm from the UK)

Jaarmst

What area of our globe consumes the highest percentage of road kill?

Sharika Elahi

which animals make up the highest percentage of road kill worldwide? or in the USA?

Trace

Most of my friends and family are the kind of people who harvest fresh (like just saw it happen) roadkill. What are the ethics and legalities behind this kind of "recycling".

Gemma

have animals started to evolve to navigating cars? or would it take way longer to see any changes in behaviour?

curly fry

How can we prevent it?

curly fry

What is the most common species that becomes road kill?

emily burns

why do some people eat roadkill?

Eliza

Every now and then I see road kill that’s been paint sprayed. Why? And why isn’t every animal sprayed? Also (in Australia) if you have a chance to slow down at night and turn your high beams off it’s meant to help prevent a sort of stunned reaction in the animal… is that true? Also never swerve… it’s dangerous?

Kellaby

I'm a wildlife rescuer in Australia and can answer your first question as it pertains to Australia - the spray paint is to show that the animal has been pouch checked, because most of our native mammals are marsupials and a joey can survive an impact that kills the mother. Spraying lets other drivers know the animal has been checked for a joey. Unsprayed bodies haven't been checked yet so you should stop and check if you can!

ben_and_his_beard

In 1973, a song called, "Dead Skunk" by Loudon Wainwright III reached #16 on the Billboard Hot 100. Have you heard this song and, if so, what was wrong with people's taste in music that year?

Eliza

Thank you very much! That’s really handy to know! It’s always heartbreaking finding something in the pouch

Jessica Cingel

Any thoughts on pedestrian road kill? I run on trails and moving all the salamanders kills my pace, but I can’t not do it.