The Wyoming Game and Fish reports that the Game and Fish Commission met this week in Buffalo for its September meeting.
The Commission once again invested in wildlife crossings to help prevent vehicle collisions with big game, voting to put $500,000 toward the Kemmerer wildlife crossing project on U.S. Highway 189.
The project — consisting of underpasses, an overpass and game fencing — will help prevent collisions with mule deer and pronghorn and create a safer road for drivers.
According to the Game and Fish, based on crash and carcass data, the department accounts for approximately 6,000 big game animals like moose, bighorn sheep, elk, deer and antelope that are killed each year on Wyoming roads. The Game and Fish Department and Wyoming Department of Transportation work together to formulate this number.
According to Game and Fish Statewide Migration Coordinator Jill Randall, the number 6,000 represents only the collisions the departments know occur. However, Randall reports that there are hundreds of crashes that go unreported and big game that die away from the road or on county roads.
The public can help to improve data collection by reporting whenever they collide with big game on the road, even if their vehicle isn’t damaged, Randall said.
More Like this
Last modified: September 14, 2022