<Anchor>
Spring is a time when wild animals are actively migrating.
As a result, accidents in which an elk who jumped into the roadway are hit by a car often occur, and 40% of roadkill accidents are concentrated around this time of year.
Reporter Lee Yong-shik conducted on-site coverage.
<Reporter>
On an outskirts road in Sejong, one elk is down on the second lane.
He died when he collided with a car while trying to cross the road.
On a road about 9km away from here, two elk were recently roadkilled one after another.
[Kim Young-man / Collection company employee: There are many in the morning.
Three or four cases a day (collection request) come in.]
Here in Sejong area, 89 elk died in roadkill accidents on national and local roads in March and April.
Fortunately, even if rescued, the injuries are so severe that they rarely return to nature.
[Lee Jin-young / Veterinarian at Chungnam Wildlife Rescue Center: It seems that there is something wrong with the spine or pelvis, and seeing all the internal organs, it seems appropriate to euthanize.] As a
result of the National Institute of Ecology investigation, elk roadkill accidents occur 4 to 4 times a year. About 40% occur in June.
Half of the roadkilled elk are one-year-old males.
[Kim Young-joon / Director of Animal Management Research Department, National Institute of Ecology: We are carefully estimating whether there is a distribution and correlation to secure the sphere of influence of young male elk.]
Last month, two otters, a first-class endangered species and a natural monument, were also hit and killed by a car.
Roadkills are frequent as new roads are opened every year, but there are no wildlife barriers or danger warning signs along the road.
As it can lead to secondary damage such as traffic accidents, it is pointed out that collision prevention measures should be rushed even in areas where accidents occur frequently.
(Video coverage: Kim Min-cheol, screen provided: Chungnam Wildlife Rescue Center)