Hitting Kangaroo

I've hit one in daylight, he jumped back towards me. I think they just zig zag as they go like a rugby player side stepping.
If you watch antelope running away from cheeta's, they side step and even completely turn around. Anything so the predator can't build up to full straight line speed.

Ah Sandy, only the does turn and come back. It's the female entitlement to change their mind. LOL

Kind regards and Seasons Greetings.

Doesn't everyone have a Sonic Roo Whistle? ;)

Just a thought, Baz - The Landy

Hit hitting oh dear.

Do they turn and hop back at the light when I am spotlighting them? No. Myth busted?

I think they just panic at the combined noise/light and go into flight mode which includes doing Crazy Ivans which may or may not be in an effort to lead the 'predator' away from does/juveniles.

Some do that, but then some just casually hop off the verge into your path like they haven't a care in the world.

There's no one single answer, but it would be nice to not have to skittle them and the best way is to drive in the middle of the day.

I was told once by a farmer up north, that they only see the first car / truck, and they then run behind and hit the second vehicle.
Having hit 2 in these circumstances ( both in twilight hours ), there may be some truth to it.
And no I am not sure if the sonic things work. Hit one with, one with out.

Steve

They don't make a roo shu to suit my vehicle. It would be good if they did. I would be first inline to buy one.

Hi Guys,
After travelling through north western NSW a few years back and recently across the Barrier Hwy where roos, emus and goats were in plague proportions it appeared that 90% of roos will run away from the car but 100% of emus will run at the car. With respect to goats grazing along the Barrier they can graze very close to the road and provided you don't blow the horn will happily graze there and not be overly bothered by passing traffic. Nevertheless animals regardless of what they are need to be treated with great respect when grazing near a road.
Robert

Normaly dont drive of a night, but had to one night near Broken hill, slowed to 80ks and the Roos seamed to just look up as I passed never hit one. On the subject of Shoo Roos had them on and hit roos on two acations.

Anyone that can work out how kangaroos think would have a fair idea on how wom..............oh, never mind, I won't go there. :-)

The farmer's idea about shadows is a good explanation Sandy, because that's often the case with cattle, and especially horses. But even the 'Roos don't know what they're thinking. I've even been "T-boned by one, passing a street light, while in my Falcon. Was he blind, or just keen to escape? Don't know, but the Falcon was injury-free.

Over the past 5-6 years, I've hit heaps of 'roos, returning to Longreach in trucks, on the stretch from Winton. Where they are thick, it's possible, not by choice though, to hit 3-4 or even more, over less than a kilometre. Some hop onto the bitumen, others are just standing in the "kill-zone", though I do try to avoid these, and others must be on a dare, as they do a mad, suicidal dash across the highway, from 20-30 metres to either side. The outcome is inevitable........if the prime mover doesn't get them, then there's still 50M of trailers following. :-(

And until it rains, 'n rains, 'n rains, they'll hang around the highways, getting a bit to eat on the shoulders, but otherwise becoming roadkill. The crows and hawks don't seem to mind.

Bob

We have hundreds of them surrounding surrounding our place and my wife complains because they choose to lay in the warm mulch in the garden.
She walks about the yard clapping my thongs together and that seems to thin them out !

Strangely enough I seem to hit less roos when I have muddies on the vehicle. The noise confuses them and they stand upright looking around rather than hopping off mindlessly in any direction.

There is a couple of things to think about.

It has to be remembered both Kangaroos and Emus are not very clever ( the kangaroo has a brain a bit bigger than a squash ball, the emu has a brain a bit bigger than its eye) neither do much of what we would consider "thinking" and most of their survival methods rely on preprogramed behaviours.

Both Kangaroos and Emus know that once they got moving at speed not much will catch them.

So it may be reasonable that the roo hops away from what frightens it ...... but now with compromised vision due to the powerfull lights ..... it now can only see the road clearly and sees it as clear open ground that it can make speed quickly on ......... its tinny brain has not yet evolved to understand that it is no longer the second fastest thing on the Australian land surface.

As for the fastest thing ..... well the Emu knows its the fastest thing in Auatralia and it "CAN run the pants off a kangaroo" it too has not yet evolved to understand that it is not faster than a motor vehicle.

Emus and to a lesser extent Kangaroos will often run straight down the centre of the road tlll they can see a point where they can exit at full speed.

Both the emu and the kangaroo also have the ability to change direction at nearly full speed and if they see that they are not leaving the threat way behind they will change direction rapidly ....... not much thinkin goes on ........ the kangaroo will bounce off to either side at any time, the emu will stik its wings out and drop one shoulder and turn 90deg at top speed.

The advice has and remains consistent ........ reduce speed and dip lights.

On the matter of whistles and shooroo.

like so many things like electronic rust prevention and intake turbulisers ( hiclone and the like) ..... the basis is a plausable concept that fails because it runs into the limits of phsyics.

The problem with ShooRoo and an issue that has been known and discussed for over 30 years is the lack or power and SPL that the device can produce.
Ultrasonic animal deterants have been well known and proven over many years...ranging from dog whistes to rodent repellents.
In a quiet situation and at short range it may be possible to prove the ShooRoo has some effect.

BUT, in a highway situation where the vehicle is noisy and running at high speed, the ShooRoo power output gets burried in the high noise floor and if effective at all, its range will be short.

The original ShooRoo was built with 2 Motorolla piezo horn tweeters ...... I know these well as they where common in lower priced Musical instrument speakers of the peroid ...I probaly still have a spec sheet somewhere........I know how much they will output and it will be drowened out by road and engine noise quite easily.

The various whistles on the other hand are powered by airflow ..... airflow that increases with speed so the faster you go the louder they get .... and 100kmh airflow thru a whistle can produce quire some SPL.

So on plausability ..... the air powered whistles have some chance of being effective.

cheers