Deer collisions set to break record again in Denmark

Denmark is expected to record more road collisions involving deer this year, after setting a new high for the fourth year in a row in 2025, DR reported.

Animal welfare organisation Dyrenes Beskyttelse registered 12,523 deer collisions on Danish roads last year. Biologist Peter Gravlund Nielsen said the number of reports may be rising because more people know they can call the organisation’s emergency line, 1812, for help. But he said there may also be more collisions, with more deer, cars and roads.

In October, 1,418 animal collisions were reported across Denmark, an average of more than 45 a day. Collisions are particularly common in October and November, when deer are active around sunrise and sunset, which coincides with many people’s commutes.

Leif Stonor Nielsen, a tracking-dog handler who uses dogs to search for injured deer, said he had never been busier in more than 25 years on the job. He covers the area around Næstved, the municipality with the most reported collisions on Zealand.

On one evening in late October, Stonor Nielsen and his three dogs were called out to their third injured animal of the day. Before they began the search, his son Michael called to say he had hit a fallow deer on the road between Næstved and Rønnede.

Michael said he was travelling at between 60 and 70 kilometres per hour when the deer leapt in front of his car. The collision damaged the front of his white Skoda. His main concern, he said, was that the animal might be left to suffer. Stonor Nielsen put it down after reaching the scene.

Stonor Nielsen said drivers can help tracking efforts if an injured deer runs away by marking the collision site, giving the dog a clear place to begin searching. Nielsen also advised drivers to slow down when they see deer warning signs, which are placed where the risk of collisions is particularly high.

Tags: Denmark, wildlife, road safety