Roadkill

Drive any road in the eastern United States and you’ll see some of the toll our way of life takes on wildlife. No matter whether it’s large or small, vehicles kill them all. Pennsylvania, with more miles of road open to the public per square mile than any other state, ranks especially high in the number of reported animal/vehicle collisions.

Although people are sometimes killed in accidents involving wildlife, either by the collision itself or in trying to avoid a collision, it’s usually the animal or bird that doesn’t survive. Here are just a few of the casualties –

 

There’s a clean-up crew that frequently disposes of the carcasses: crows, ravens and turkey vultures quickly find most of the roadkill –

Recently H and I were were heading home when we saw a road-killed deer and a couple of large black birds flying away as we passed. Ravens! Ravens are one of my favorite birds and I couldn’t pass up a chance for some photographs; although the good camera was at home there was a camera in the car, so we turned around to go back and wait to see if the ravens returned.

It was then that H saw a third raven in an adjacent field and realized that it had an injured wing. We parked nearby, shortly the raven walked to the road-killed deer and began feeding –

Fields surround this spot for hundreds of yards so the raven must have been injured as it fed on the deer and dawdled a bit too long as a vehicle approached – a serious risk inherent in feeding on roadkill. Although it was now feeding rapidly and there was plenty of food, the chances of it surviving are between slim and none.

I wanted to catch the bird and get it to a licensed rehabilitator. But we were on the way home from the hospital where I’d had minor surgery followed by strict instructions not to bend over or engage in vigorous exercise for five days. Catching the raven would have involved both, even if it would have been possible without a large net and/or more help. Sadly, this raven will likely become indirect roadkill itself.