A new study shows Iowa remains one of the top states for deer collisions.
State Farm’s 2017 deer-collision study shows Iowa drivers have a 1-in-69 chance of hitting a deer, elk or moose. The data is based on insurance claims. Drivers in West Virginia are at the greatest risk with a 1-in-43 chance of hitting a deer with their cars. Iowa is fourth on the list behind West Virginia, Montana and Pennsylvania. Tyler Harms, a wildlife research biologist with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, says his agency tries to maintain a “very careful balance” of the deer population.
Harms said. In the early 2000s, a deer study advisory committee set a goal for Iowa’s annual deer hunter harvest at 100 to 120,000 deer.
Iowa’s landscape contributes to the state’s high deer collision rate, according to Harms, as the deer are often leaving forests or brush in search of food.
There were over 7,100 crashes between vehicles and deer reported to Iowa law enforcement last year.
