REGIONAL — Their eyes flash in the headlights.

They stare back, dazed by the sudden brightness.

Then the four-legged creature attached to them decides to move.

It’s too late.

South Carolina’s white-tailed deer population — thanks in large part to the efforts of hunters — has moderated since 2000 and statewide populations are estimated at about 25 percent less now than 10 years ago, according to South Carolina Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Biologist and Dear/Turkey Project Supervisor Charles Ruth.

However, there still are hundreds of thousands of Bambi’s relatives hopping and running around the countryside and forest areas of the state and they still — from time to time — cross paths, literally, with the state’s motorists.

Especially in rural areas like Union County, which also has a portion of a national forest located within its borders.

“There’s still a lot of deer but there are fewer deer in your area than 10 years ago,” Ruth said.

According to the South Carolina Department of Public Safety, there were 1,921 deer-vehicle collisions reported to law enforcement agencies around the state in 2008 — the lowest number since the 1980s. There were just 12 deer-vehicle collisions in Union County the same year reported by the DPS.

Those numbers show a decline compared to several years ago. The DPS reported a total of 3,374 deer-vehicle collisions in 2002 and Union County’s total was nearly doubled in 2002 at 23.

That’s good news, but the figure also could be somewhat misleading.

“I think we probably have about 10,000 deer-vehicle collisions in South Carolina,” Ruth said on an annual basis.

The low number of reported incidents could have something to do with the lack of reporting for minor damages and not the actual number of collisions. He added although deer-vehicle collisions are an issue in South Carolina, the state is in much better position than others.

“If you look at it on a relative basis, we don’t have as significant of numbers as other regions,” Ruth said.

He said while South Carolina has the deer numbers, it doesn’t have the same numbers of people as other states and regions with comparable deer populations. States like Georgia, Virginia, North Carolina and those in the New England and Upper Midwest regions can see as many as 50,000 deer-vehicle collisions annually.

Whatever the case, it’s important to understand why deer have a tendency to run into traffic and how to avoid colliding with them while on the state’s roadways.

The months from October through January are particularly bad for deer-vehicle encounters as the animals are moving around more because of breeding — or rut.

“The peak is usually around the latter part of October and early November but it can start as early as September and go as late as January,” said DNR Wildlife Biologist for Union, Cherokee, Spartanburg and Laurens counties Gerald Moore. “That’s the time of year deer are most likely to be moving more.”

So any noticeable increase motorists might have noticed in the amount of deer along highways over the last several months is to be expected.

“Fall is the worst time,” Ruth added. “They naturally increase their movement in association with breeding.”

Which means they will be moving more across roadways.

That doesn’t mean, however, deer aren’t an issue for motorists at other times of the year.

“You can see them at any time,” Moore said.

Especially at dawn and dusk.

Ruth said deer movement tends to be concentrated around those times of the day. Unfortunately, those also are the times large numbers of South Carolinians are driving to and from work.

“It all lines up,” he said.

Ruth says deer are masters of evading predators. The same instincts that tell the animals to stay away or run from their natural enemies, however, often cause deer to bolt in front of oncoming traffic.

The key to avoiding the white-tailed bolts could be as simple as slowing down.

“When you see a deer, slow down,” Moore said. “There’s a very good chance there may be others.”

Ruth says when deer are sighted well ahead of a vehicle, the best recommendations are to sound the horn several times, flicking the headlights — if there is no oncoming traffic — and slowing down. From a short distance, however, those same collision-avoidance techniques — horn and flashing lights — could spook the animal or animals into running in front of a vehicle.

In that case, it’s simply best to slow down.

“They can get blinded by headlights,” Moore said, making the deer confused about which way it should go.

Ruth reiterated motorists should always expect more than one deer and “do not expect the deer to get out of the way.”

Drivers also should pay attention to changes in habitat types along the roadways.

“The zone between habitat types is a likely place for deer to cross a road,” Ruth said. “Creek bottoms and where agricultural fields meet woodlands are also prime areas for deer to cross roadways.”

Rural and secondary roads also pose a greater risk of deer-vehicle collisions — ranking the highest for numbers of accidents — because, Ruth says, of the frequent curves and narrow shoulders causing motorists to have little warning and therefore limited response time upon encountered deer.

Even people in suburban or metropolitan areas run risks of colliding with deer as populations of the animals increase in those areas due to little management.

Moore and Ruth said the state puts up deer-crossing signs in high concentration areas of the animals and collisions as the result of them crossing the road. The signs do not mark, however, specific deer trails and motorists should be aware deer can cross for several miles where the signs are posted.

So with the threat out there of encountering any number of deer on the highway, what happens if that encounter results in a collision?

“Report the incident to the state Highway Patrol or local law enforcement and to your insurance company,” Ruth said.

There is an upside to a deer-vehicle collision — depending on how a motorist looks at it. Ruth said many people wonder if it is possible to keep the deer they struck — if dead — to eat.

He said it’s generally not a problem as long as there is an incident report demonstrating the animal was killed by a vehicle and not illegally shot.

According to figures from the DNR, there were a total of 12 deer-vehicle collisions in Union County in 2008 reported to the S.C. Department of Public Safety.

Photo from Metro Creative Services

KEEP IN MIND:

A decline in the number of collisions may have more to do with the change in how they are reported due to a lack of reporting minor damages rather than an actual reduction in collisions, according to South Carolina Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Biologist and DNR Deer/Turkey Project Supervisor Charles Ruth.