On my travels using the state and county highways, I can’t help but to observe a tremendous amount of road killed deer that met their end with an auto collision.

Pennsylvania leads the nation with the volume of auto-deer collisions and has more auto-deer fatalities than some states have as a number for their annual hunting harvest.

State Farm Insurance released a recent year’s deer killed by auto statistic of 126,275 in 2015. There is hardly anyone that I know that hasn’t either hit a deer personally or at least knows of someone who has hit a deer. With deer hunting season approaching and then the rut for bucks mating and chasing after does, you will likely see some deer in the roadways.

Once a deer makes its mind up to cross a roadway, it will travel at all speeds to get from point A to point B. Deer will meander, stand along the edge of the road and play follow the leader.

When I see one deer cross the roadway in front of me, I always count on a few more. I will slow down and purposely look for the rest of the crew that sometimes follows. Many a fawn has met its end by lagging behind its mother and then scrambling to catch up without looking for danger.

Sometimes in my travels, I have seen deer road kill in towns, townships and state highways. When they are highway hazards I will make it a point to notify the 911 emergency number in order to prevent a human tragedy or greater accident.

When possible, I have seen good Samaritans aid in the dragging of a deer off the roadway. Of course, this poses a whole new set of problems if someone gets hurt in the process.

It amazes me that drivers often ignore the dangers of such actions to the helper and to themselves. During these times, I wondered to myself just who is responsible for the removal of deer carcasses?

Different people have answered the question with the Game Commission, the PA State Police, PennDOT, paid contractors and local municipalities.

With a little research, I found that there is more confusion than answers to this question. Each of these entities has been involved in the removal of dead deer at one time or another. The primary contact for deer removal on state highways is actually PennDOT, since a recent Bill was presented by Senator Joe Scarnati of Jefferson County.

Senator Scarnati’s district is part of the I-80 corridor and the PA Wilds areas. Just when it started to become a bit clearer, the waters became muddy again. PennDOT doesn’t pick up deer or other game animals that are not on state routes. It appears that the PA Game Commission handles kills on township roads when manpower allows them to do so.

If you want to claim a freshly killed deer, you will need to contact the PGC Regional Office and obtain a permit. They may keep the antlers and hide for commission use or sale but you can keep the meat that is salvageable.

I actually know of people who have salvaged black bear, elk and deer meat for this purpose but it is a process.

Woe is the fellow who has a deer hit on the road and it stumbles into your yard or driveway. It appears that in this case, no one takes the credit for the removal.

A neighbor hit a deer in front of my house and it was a fatality. When I called the PA Game Commission to report the dead deer, they asked me if I wanted to claim the deer. hen I declined the deer, they instructed me to leave it alone or drag it somewhere that wouldn’t make it a nuisance.

Fortunately for me, the issue was resolved by the local wildlife, most likely a bear or coyotes because it was hauled off in a few days. Not so lucky was the old-timer that waited too long to have a deer picked up outside of Grove City.The deer laid there for a week and at last notice was covered with a thick coat of lime dust in his side yard. Not a pleasant situation, but a common one as you see many deer along our roadways as no one takes the responsibility.

It is best to avoid deer collisions by paying attention to deer travel corridors which many times are posted with signs. Watch wooded areas that connect fields and places that always seem to have deer activity.

Food sources like bean fields, corn fields, orchards and mast producing trees are also likely places. But one thing for sure is that the PA whitetail is always on the move and highly unpredictable.

Until we meet again, keep your eyes open and slow it down in those deer areas!

Jay Hewitt is an outdoors columnist for the Butler Eagle