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Any average day 16 elks collide with cars carrying humans in Sweden. These animals have no natural predators any longer - without these annual culls (100k out o

Any average day 16 elks collide with cars carrying humans in Sweden. These animals have no natural predators any longer - without these annual culls (100k out of a population of about 350k - these numbers are relatively stable from year to year) they would reach very large numbers very quickly. (There are not that many human deaths from this any longer; about five annually. It used to be a lot worse before e.g. Volvo focused on fixing this safety problem. Someone I knew died from an elk collision about 25 years ago.)

douche 9y ago
BTW, the original paper is about Cervus Elpaphus, which in the US we call Red Deer. This is different from American Elk, and also from Scandanavian Elk (which we Americans call Moose). Moose are terrifying, since they are often upwards of 1000 pounds, and are tall enough that when you hit them with anything smaller than a full-size pickup or tractor trailer, they tend to fall on the roof and windscreen of the vehicle, crushing them and killing the passengers.
- johansch 9y ago
  Ah.. Anyway, I think Volvo addressed this problem by a) reinforcing particularly the A pillars using some very strong Boron steel alloy: http://135jik1bbhst1159ri1ax2pj.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2013/08/2010_Volvo_V60_Body_Structure_Safety_Cage_Extrication_UHSS_Boron-1024x724.jpg http://135jik1bbhst1159ri1ax2pj.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com/wp-c... b) angling the A pillars/front screen more in order to deflect some of the forces caused by a direct collision with a Moose.
- nkurz 9y ago
  I agree that confusion exists, but I don't think you have the details quite correct. In North America, I think the term "Red Deer" is only used to describe non-native animals. The paper says its about Cervus elaphus, but the study was done in Alberta, Canada. The native animals that are hunted in Alberta are locally called Elk and the provincial government says they are synonymous with Wapiti: http://aep.alberta.ca/fish-wildlife/wild-species/mammals/deer/elk.aspx http://aep.alberta.ca/fish-wildlife/wild-species/mammals/dee.... I think the missing pieces of information is that Wapiti (Cervus canadensis) was until recently classified as a subspecies of Cervus elaphus. I'm guessing that the authors of the paper (and the provincial government) either don't agree with this reclassification, or have some legal reason for continuing to refer to the native North American animals by the older Latin name.
- dboreham 9y ago
  Hmm. I'm in Norway this week, but I live in Montana. We have Moose in our yard at home. There are stuffed Moose in the museums here (labeled "Moose"). They're the same animal. I grew up in Scotland where we have Red Deer. Those animals are roughy the same thing as a North American Elk.

douche 9y ago

BTW, the original paper is about Cervus Elpaphus, which in the US we call Red Deer. This is different from American Elk, and also from Scandanavian Elk (which we Americans call Moose). Moose are terrifying, since they are often upwards of 1000 pounds, and are tall enough that when you hit them with anything smaller than a full-size pickup or tractor trailer, they tend to fall on the roof and windscreen of the vehicle, crushing them and killing the passengers.

johansch 9y ago
Ah.. Anyway, I think Volvo addressed this problem by a) reinforcing particularly the A pillars using some very strong Boron steel alloy: http://135jik1bbhst1159ri1ax2pj.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2013/08/2010_Volvo_V60_Body_Structure_Safety_Cage_Extrication_UHSS_Boron-1024x724.jpg http://135jik1bbhst1159ri1ax2pj.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com/wp-c... b) angling the A pillars/front screen more in order to deflect some of the forces caused by a direct collision with a Moose.
nkurz 9y ago
I agree that confusion exists, but I don't think you have the details quite correct. In North America, I think the term "Red Deer" is only used to describe non-native animals. The paper says its about Cervus elaphus, but the study was done in Alberta, Canada. The native animals that are hunted in Alberta are locally called Elk and the provincial government says they are synonymous with Wapiti: http://aep.alberta.ca/fish-wildlife/wild-species/mammals/deer/elk.aspx http://aep.alberta.ca/fish-wildlife/wild-species/mammals/dee.... I think the missing pieces of information is that Wapiti (Cervus canadensis) was until recently classified as a subspecies of Cervus elaphus. I'm guessing that the authors of the paper (and the provincial government) either don't agree with this reclassification, or have some legal reason for continuing to refer to the native North American animals by the older Latin name.
dboreham 9y ago
Hmm. I'm in Norway this week, but I live in Montana. We have Moose in our yard at home. There are stuffed Moose in the museums here (labeled "Moose"). They're the same animal. I grew up in Scotland where we have Red Deer. Those animals are roughy the same thing as a North American Elk.