Commuting - Roadkill

I have only been commuting since March, closing in on the 1 year mark! Anyway, how common is roadkill on the side of the road/trail? I got my first taste of it yesterday, and today was even worse. In DC up by the airport there is ... uh... something decomposing on the side of the trail. You smell it coming, and going. And as it gets warmer and the snow melts, well...... I pass by this point everyday, and while this is better than the tacks the smell is god awful! Anybody else deal with this sort of thing? Is it as common as I think?

I see dead squirrels from time to time. They are rarely there longer than a day.
Isn't there someone who is supposed to clean this up?

I see dead squirrels from time to time. They are rarely there longer than a day.
Isn't there someone who is supposed to clean this up?

Yeah, I emailed the park service. Whatever this was it was fairly large, and I really wish it was the squirrel. :)

The buzzards are your friends. Just don't run over/into one while it is on the job.

Road kill disappears pretty quickly around here. I don't know if its the foxes and raccoons making off with the carcasses or if its somebody from the Department of Natural Resources. Obviously the DNR takes care of the big stuff like deer hit by cars.

Maybe the area is very urban and they aren't used to so much road kill? Anyway, we get lots of it but it disappears quickly.

Since Katrina, I have seen a dead rat, a dead dog and two squirrels. My dog picked up one of the latter in her mouth.

Over the years the worst I've seen (a couple of times) is dead deer. Seeing their gutted carcasses and exposed bones is a little unsettling. I've also *heard* a cat get smacked (sickening crunch + meow) and seen countless squirrels, racoons, birds, etc in various states of flattenedness.

I saw a dead jackrabbit on a bike trail. Not sure how it got there. Not sure if I want to know.

Dead On Road. Something new dead every day as half my commute is in farm/wetland country. Raccoons and possums every week, skunks every month or two, 15 to 20 deer a year. A fun roadkill case was when the city didn't remove a huge raccoon carcass from the bike lane for two days. The next morning on my pre-dawn commute I used medical gloves and tossed the body out into a traffic lane when no cars could be seen on the curvy road. Next AM the mess was gone. My worst was having a big nasty looking dog running toward me as I rode a narrow roadside path over a long bridge. If the dog had hit me or just knocked me off of the bike I would have fallen into heavy traffic. I stood on the pedals to look bigger and whistled loudly. The dog stopped at first then as I got close it jumped off of the path and under a truck. Loud crunch and the dog became dogburger about 3 feet from me as I sprinted past.

I have only been commuting since March, closing in on the 1 year mark! Anyway, how common is roadkill on the side of the road/trail? I got my first taste of it yesterday, and today was even worse. In DC up by the airport there is ... uh... something decomposing on the side of the trail. You smell it coming, and going. And as it gets warmer and the snow melts, well...... I pass by this point everyday, and while this is better than the tacks the smell is god awful! Anybody else deal with this sort of thing? Is it as common as I think?
I see roadkill all the time, the rural roads I ride home on a littered with cat/ dog/ coyote/ possum/ snake corpses on a daily basis. I try to ignore them but there is usually something along the way. The other day it was someones freshly killed pet Chihuahua the other day. Usually the smaller ones don't bug me much (that one did, there were some young girls checking out the body and I think it was there pet) but every once in a while there is a big one that gets spread for 100' down the road.

The problem where I commute is lots of open space for the animals coupled with lots of traffic at high speed. If you are just experiencing this after a year of commuting I envy you, it's a daily thing for me.

I see about two every 10 miles or so...

whatever you do, keep your eyes open. i once accidently turned and slipped on a squirrel carcass. :( needless to say i saw the world from the squirrel's perspective. it was fresh or something -- oh it was truly sickening having pureed squirrel stuck to the back of your schoolbag. sick sick sickening oh man that was disgusting...

A good friend of mine that moved to Minneapolis from Fairbanks Alaska (for grad school) told me about his near experience with roadkill last fall. He was on his beat-up dumpster mountain bike he uses to get to and from campus and a squirrel ran out in front of him. He's not exactly skinny, and he didn't have time to react. Both tires bumped over the furry critter, and it immediately GOT UP and ran away. After that, he respected and feared the Minneapolis tree rats.

There are some truly sick people out there. Someone has taken the carcass and dragged it onto the bike trail itself!!! If I had a stronger stomach (or weaker nose) I might have moved it back, but that is truly disgusting. I have to admit, seems like I am lucky compared to some of you!

I commute through rural Michigan, going on 3 years now.

If you're bored, it can be a hobby to watch a newly-dead deer decompose down to skeleton over the course of a year or so.

The skunk that got whacked back in December on mile 6 of my commute finally stopped making skunk smell, now it's just rotting which I'm used to.

There are some interesting smells as the snow melts, but usually the carcasses have dehydrated a bit by then and it's not overpowering.

A deer that's about 3 weeks dead is the worst. Hasn't dried out yet, and the stench can be pretty bad out to 100 feet or so.

I rarely see anyone take care of roadkill. If some happens in front of my property I'll go out with a shovel and bury it, otherwise I'll be watching it for months.

Here in the city, they don't usually last long, maybe a day or two. Either the city or some homeowner cleans them up, I'm not sure (I've buried my share of squirrels). If you're out in a more rural area, and are feeling brave, try and toss it into the woods/fields nearby. It may help keep the smell down, plus you won't have to look at it every day. If it's something big, call whatever authorities responsible for such cleanup.

Or, take ItsJustMe's advice and observe the wonders of decomposition, haha

Last winter, a car flew past me, and then ran right over a squirrels head, killing it instantly. I bagged the squirrel, brought it home, and ate it for dinner.

There are some truly sick people out there. Someone has taken the carcass and dragged it onto the bike trail itself!!! If I had a stronger stomach (or weaker nose) I might have moved it back, but that is truly disgusting. I have to admit, seems like I am lucky compared to some of you!

Someone may have done this so that the city or park crew will see it and hopefully haul it away.

As far as seeing roadkill, I see dead stuff all the time. I live in an urban area, but there are lots of parks and greenbelts between home and work. Let's see, I've seen...
dogs
cats
tortoises/sliders
frogs/toads
coyote
snakes
skunk
racoon
armadillos
bobcat
vulture
squirrells
cow

Okay, the cow probably wasn't roadkill perse, but it was by the road and dead. I don't know how it got out of the fence, but it was gone by the time I rode home.

I have only been commuting since March, closing in on the 1 year mark! Anyway, how common is roadkill on the side of the road/trail? I got my first taste of it yesterday, and today was even worse. In DC up by the airport there is ... uh... something decomposing on the side of the trail. You smell it coming, and going. And as it gets warmer and the snow melts, well...... I pass by this point everyday, and while this is better than the tacks the smell is god awful! Anybody else deal with this sort of thing? Is it as common as I think?

Yeah, what IS that thing? I saw it Monday on my snowy and icy commute, but it was not stinking yet. It's not a deer... maybe a big beaver? I had to look twice to make sure it wasn't a person.

I also see the usual suburban roadkill: squirrels, cats, 'possum, skunks (those are the worst, smell-wise). I once saw a couple of boys shoveling a small dog into a Krispy Kreme box. The dog was theirs as they were both crying. I found it ironic that although the dog was theirs, they didn't want to touch it once it was dead and used the box and shovel instead.

I think the worst was a news article I read in the paper earlier this year. I man riding his bike to work in the early morning darkness came upon a dead body. Someone was stabbed after an altercation and he had staggered out onto the driveway and collapsed in the gutter. Shudder...... Considering the time of day I commute and the amount of traffic, the chances of my finding a dead body are almost zero. Whew!

I've only seen the state animal of Texas - a dead armadillo... Almost ran over one on the side of the road this morning, as a matter of fact...

I avoid the smushed remains of a skunk every day. Run over multiple times, then only half way cleaned up... you can still make out the spine and some of the fur around it and its been 3-4 months like this. Yeeeuk. Saw a huge skunk upside down on the road this morning in the same area. And a dead bird, squished.

The only roadkill in Las Vegas is domestic animals (pets) and the occasional bird. Not really a problem on my commute.

There are some truly sick people out there. Someone has taken the carcass and dragged it onto the bike trail itself!!! If I had a stronger stomach (or weaker nose) I might have moved it back, but that is truly disgusting. I have to admit, seems like I am lucky compared to some of you!

Oh you wanna hear sick? The nastiest road-kill incident I've ever seen took place when I got curious enough to pedal to downtown L.A. to check out the local messengers 'games'. They held their obstacle course competition down in the L.A. river below the 6th street bridge. Anyway, there was a nasty, knarly, big, bloated, long dead possum which they decided to use as the turn around for this 'out and back' race.

Well one of the more deeply disturbed compeditors dismounted and snatched up the reeking carcass and proceeded to charge a few of the course judges. When his first attempts did not ilicit whatever response he intended he charged again - this time holding the decomposing vermin in his teeth!

Now I ask you, could I even make that up?

It was my first and last messenger competition.

DanO

I found it ironic that although the dog was theirs, they didn't want to touch it once it was dead and used the box and shovel instead.

That's an interesting observation. My favorite cat was killed on the road in front of my house a couple of years ago. When I came out there were a dozen or so people standing around. I walked up, looked, and said "Yes, that's my cat." I bent down and picked it up, holding it the same as if it were alive. People really looked shocked when I touched it at all. I wasn't in a mood to talk, I just turned and walked back to the house.

It wasn't bloody or even deformed, it was just dead. People have funny hangups.

Gotten used to roadkill. However, still gets me when I see it was a puppy.

I have to laugh at people's illogical squimishness towards dead things. I teach anatomy to medical students, and I'm surrounded by death all day long. Thoughout the anatomy course the students completely dismantle human cadavers. Most of them do this without wincing once. However, some collegues and I were dissecting a horse head for research, and most of the students were really disturbed by it...how can a dead horse be any more disturbing than a dismantled human cadaver, of for that matter, a steak in the meat department of you local supermarket?

I am thinking it might be a racoon, fox, something that size.


Yeah, what IS that thing? I saw it Monday on my snowy and icy commute, but it was not stinking yet. It's not a deer... maybe a big beaver? I had to look twice to make sure it wasn't a person.

I have to laugh at people's illogical squimishness towards dead things. I teach anatomy to medical students, and I'm surrounded by death all day long. Thoughout the anatomy course the students completely dismantle human cadavers. Most of them do this without wincing once. However, some collegues and I were dissecting a horse head for research, and most of the students were really disturbed by it...how can a dead horse be any more disturbing than a dismantled human cadaver, of for that matter, a steak in the meat department of you local supermarket?

Its the smell. I had 30 months of Chemotherapy not to long ago and to me the smell is like that in the oncology ward. It just smells like decomposing flesh and sickness. That bothers me. My fiance is a anethestitist (sp) and has no problem with anything, again but that smell. She got so used to it with me that she has the same reaction. I guess it is all just what you have and have not been exposed too.

I am thinking it might be a racoon, fox, something that size.

It looked bigger to me, but then I haven't seen it since Monday. Whoever moved it into the trail is a very disturbed person. Karma will prevail. I hope that no one hits it and has an accident while riding in the dark.

I see dead squirrels from time to time. They are rarely there longer than a day.
Isn't there someone who is supposed to clean this up?

Road kill here in Colorado tends to jerk out pretty quickly. Good eatin's ;)

To be honest, even with over 39,000 miles and 2000 days of commuting, I don't often see roadkill. Did have a bizarre event happen just a couple of weeks ago, however. A flock of geese were just taking off over me as I road to work. They were moving from one lake along a greenway to another and were flying kind of low. I heard a loud bang like a shot gun going off but this is a no hunting area and when I turned to look where the sound came from, there was a goose tumbling down into a tree. It came to rest about 30 feet up, obviously dead, hanging head down in the tree. It was following the group and collided with a branch when they passed low over the trees and killed itself. Not road kill but one of the more bizarre things I've ever seen riding a bicycle.

Big time road kill here, Southern Ontario, in the sticks.
No one picks these dead animals up. Just the vultures. And even they get their fill and leave some to melt away into a black smudge on the road.
Whoa, almost went on an elongated urban vs rural rant there. But really people are so wimpy about these things. If there is a dead animal on the bike path or the road and it's bothering you and it's not turning luquid and you get a chance, move the ****ing thing.

In the last month I've passed a dead skunk and a dead deer on the road. This evening traveling at 28mph + downhill on the trail something ran out (it was moving perpendicular and fast!) and bounced off my front spokes. I don't think I ran over it. If it was even as big as a cat I'd probably have been examining the trail conditions at ground level.

Not really bike related, but when I was a freshman, going to Michigan State, me and a friend would often drive back home on weekends, and on the way home, and then back to school, we'd count how many roadkills we saw. It's kind of morbid, but you wouldn't believe how many you'd see in just 80 miles of road. It's almost one for every mile. :(

Roughly a month ago I encountered a dead cat with most of its guts spilled out on the road. Wasn't pretty to look at. About a week ago, as I was collecting several full bags of bottles and cans in the ditch, I think I came across its body again.

A few years ago, I saw a really funny looking piece of roadkill (granted, whilst riding a bus). It was the middle of winter, and there was a cat, its mouth open, sitting (legs more or less straight out) in a snowbank on the side of the road. Even though it was sad (because I am fond of cats), it looked very funny.

Commuting in the city I see a pigeon about once a week.

Yeah, well beat this.

I used to live in the United Arab Emirates, and I saw a partially mummified camel skeleton! I took it's femor bone home.

I see dead squirrels and armadillos all the time in my commute in Austin, Texas. I mean, probably, an average of 2-3 per commute.

Whenever I work out, I do my reps holding my breath so that I'm able to just stop breathing for 30 seconds when I spot roadkill coming.

Yeah, even though they have moved the Roadkill now (think someone tossed it in the woods across the way) the smell is still there. Learning to hold my breath. Thats gonna take a while!

Yeah, well beat this.

I used to live in the United Arab Emirates, and I saw a partially mummified camel skeleton! I took it's femor bone home.

Camel's cool. I took a different route home yesterday in order to go to the blood drive, and saw a totally dessicated deer.

I currently pass two possums, an armadillo, and a dog. I see at least a few critters a week that didn't make it across the highway.

I've only seen the state animal of Texas - a dead armadillo... Almost ran over one on the side of the road this morning, as a matter of fact...

Dead armadillo.... isn't that redundant? Here in North Florida we get our share of deer, rabbits, possums, squirrels, armadillos, and raccoons. I have also seen a road-kill alligator south of Lakeland, Florida and I passed a red fox on Thomasville Road this week. That is the second one in the same block over the last year or so.

Update! The dog was gone as of lunchtime today. (2/17). Now I just have to dodge the possum pizzas.

Camels, birds, armadillos, alligators, Hah! 15 some years ago a jogger on the Santa Ana River Trail was out early one morn and stumbled across a human corpse. Now thats' roadkill. It turned out the guy had been murdered there in Orange County the night before. The river had been in flood for a while and the killers thought to drop it in the water and have the evidnece washed out into the Pacific a few miles down stream. But that night the floodgates at the Prado Dama upstream had been shut and in the darkness the waterlevel had dropped enough for the body to hit the bike/jogging path when it was dumped off of the bridge.

Or the fuss back East (Pennsylvania?) where a road crew paved over half a deer carcass on the side of the road. Quite a picture.

One of the many reasons I ditched my 2.125" knobbies is because I was forced to run over a 'possum pizza that was, well, rather underdone. It's The Smell. It must have stuck to the tires because when I got home and brought the bike into the shop I nearly spasmed into dry heaves. Another reason I have large, effective fenders!

I actually think roadkill is slightly diminished since I first started long distance cycling over 35 years ago. The reason being that automobiles and roadways are only about 100 years old and in more than one third of that time many species are adapting to autos as a form of predator to their species. Though I still see a substantial amount of road kill there does seem to be slightly less from year to year.

There was a great deal of controversy here in Massachusetts when it was revealed that all of the roadkill on the Mass Turnpike was being dumped in a portion of the median strip on the highway and left to rot.

I once had a squirrel, who was being pursued by a big house cat, leap into the front spokes of my 20" wheeled folding bike as I descended a steep hill in a suburban area lined by commuters waiting at bus stops. I though it was going to run up my leg to get away and stuck my legs out parallel to the ground so it couldn't get me. It must have been quite a sight to see me flying down the hill at about 30 mph with fur flying from my front wheel and me with my legs out straight screaming in sheer horror.

I ran over a deer last week while riding home at night. I have 2 watts of lights up front. The main thing was that I wasn't paying attention. Good thing it was a small one or I might have endo'ed. I was just cruising the unlit new boulevard on the edge of town and admiring the sky. What's that! Thump thump. Oh my, that was a deer.

It was cleared from the road the next day.

Here's the body count from a 20 mile rides this past Sunday: 2 frogs, 1 hawk, 2 possums, 2 armadillos, 1 raccoon, and 1 turtle. I never kept score before and was rather surprised at how many creatures bought the farm on US319.

Roadkill is awesome for all those folks trying the 'Paleo' diets :)

whatever you do, keep your eyes open. i once accidently turned and slipped on a squirrel carcass. :( needless to say i saw the world from the squirrel's perspective. it was fresh or something -- oh it was truly sickening having pureed squirrel stuck to the back of your schoolbag. sick sick sickening oh man that was disgusting...

:eek: That is terrible! Of course I feel terrible that you had to suffer squirrel gut on your school bag -- but I cannot stop laughing at the image.