Squirrels may dash! Photo Credit: Octopushat via Flickr
Squirrels may dash! Photo Credit: Octopushat via Flickr

Squirrels have a nasty habit of getting themselves hit by cars. This is very apparent to bicyclists or walkers. Why is it the squirrels? Of all the road kill species found on the street, squirrels are the most common.

Squirrels have a reason for being hit by cars. Not a good one, but a reason. It’s called instincts. Squirrels, like all prey species, have instincts to try to lower successful predation. Their instincts involve them dashing back in forth to try to confuse the predator. I am unsure of the success rates in the wild, but cars don’t confuse easily, so the success rate of squirrels versus the cars is very, very low….

Even this scientific information did not help me as the smell wafted by my nostrils as I road by on my bike. At least it inspired me to ride faster.