area and it is not a pleasant sight. It is often very distressing for the driver involved and
also for the deer if it is not killed outright. Sadly there have also been human fatalities
(10 in the UK in 2003 including one in Essex). Almost unbelievably one report suggested
that there were as many as 30,000 deer collisions in the UK annually and that in Essex
there are between 800 and 1,000 every year, one of the highest county totals in the UK.
It is known that the accidents peak in October and December when dawn and dusk, the
peak time for deer activity coincides with heavy rush hour traffic - I can remember coming
back from a visit to Sherwood Forest and seeing a fallow doe grazing the verge of the
A12 near Brentwood only feet away from traffic travelling at 70mph or more at dusk.
October is also the peak retting time for deer and of course the male deer have other
matters on their mind. To combat the threat of accidental collisions deer-proof fencing
has been erected, for a long time on parts of the Ml 1 and more recently on the new A120
in mid Essex which has six miles of 2 to 2.2 metre high fencing between Dunmow and
Stansted. Red oblique reflectors have also been positioned on parts of the A12 used by
deer. Underpasses and dedicated deer crossing bridges have also been created to help
deal with the problem. Rumble strips are also being experimented with the noise hopefully
deterring deer from crossing busy roads when vehicles are approaching.
Sources: Essex Chronicle 27/1 /05 and East Anglian Daily Times 7/10/04
There is a Deer Collisions Website at www.deercollisions.co.uk and the co-ordinators
Jochen Langbein and Rory Putman would appreciate any Essex records. I believe the
project has at least one year to run.
ESSEX FIELD CLUB COUNTY RECORDERS FOR 2005/2006
The Recorders compile and maintain detailed records of Essex flora, fauna and geology.
They welcome records from members and these should include species, date of observation,
location and, where possible, a six-figure grid reference and any habitat or other relevant
ecological data. They will also assist with identification and answer queries on their subjects
but where a reply is necessary please enclose a stamped addressed envelope.
BOTANICAL RECORDERS
Flowering Plants & Bryophytes: K J Adams BSc, PhD, 63 Wroths Path, Baldwins Hill,
Loughton, Essex 1G10 1SH Telephone: 020 8508 7863
Veteran Trees: M.W. Hanson, 3 Church Cottages, Church Road, Boreham, Essex CM3 3EG.
Telephone: 01245 464818.
Freshwater Algae: Miss J H Belcher PhD, DSc, 23 Pepys Way, Girton, Cambridge CB3 0PA
Myxomycetes: M J Gregory, Dukes Orchard, Spring Elms Lane, Little Baddow, Essex CM3 4SG
Telephone: 01245 223300
Fungi: G Kibby, 43 Keevil Drive, Southfields, London SW19 6TE. Telephone: 020 8789 7664
Lichens: J Skinner, Southend Central Museum, Victoria Avenue, Southend-on-Sea, Essex SS2 6EW
Telephone: 01702 215130
INVERTEBRATE RECORDERS
Bumblebees: Professor E. Benton, 13 Priory Street, Colchester COl 2PY
20 Essex Field Club Newsletter No. 47, May 2005