By Roberta Burkhart, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

If you think you’ve noticed more deer darting across roads or lingering at the edge of your headlights, that’s not your imagination.

Pennsylvania, consistently among the worst for collisions between wildlife and vehicles, has seen crashes due to deer rising over the past five years, with 6,426 such collisions in 2024, per data from PennDOT.

And, beware, this week could add mightily to 2025’s tally.

“The peak of the rut in Pennsylvania is between the 12th and the 18th of November. It’s the worst time to be driving,” said Don Wagner, the deer unit manager at Penn State University in State College.

“Bucks are extending their home range. They’re going out farther, looking for does,” he said.

Young males can wander miles to avoid inbreeding, “w

See Full Page