Wildlife Protection

Keeping It Simple: Easy Ways to Help Wildlife Along Roads

Wood tops on deer fences reduce injury and death

In the past, when mule deer tried to jump over one of the high right-of-way fences along WYO 135 southeast of Riverton, Wyoming, they often misjudged the fence's height and jumped too low, hitting the fence full-force. Typically, the impact flipped the animals over and onto the ground, breaking their necks or severely injuring them. So the Wyoming Department of Transportation did the right thing - and a simple thing. Maintenance crews replaced the wire on top of the fences with horizontal wood poles. The highly visible wood tops enable the deer or antelope to correctly judge the height of each fence and to jump over it - or entirely avoid it - more easily.

--Apr 25, 2003

Rod Vaughn, (307) 772-2004 or Rodney.Vaughn@fhwa.dot.gov

Horizontal wood poles along top of right-of-way fence

Wyoming Department of Transportation photo

Wood tops on right-of-way fence along WYO 135

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Along Roads - Wyoming