Deadly Silence of Electric Cars?

[Stanley]

Can the silence of electric cars be harmful to wild squirrels? They normally expect some kind of engine noise, when they've become "road-wise." But my Mom-In-Law lives in a wooded, upscale neighborhood. Local squirrels love her place because her trees had a bumper crop of acorns. But, I have seen a few heart-breaking squirrel/car accidents, all in about the same place. This never happened before. There is a neighbor down the road with an electric car that is perfectly silent, and I wonder if there is any connection. Has anyone else seen this situation?

[TubeDriver]

Probably! Dangerous to pedestrians as well.


Can the silence of electric cars be harmful to wild squirrels? They normally expect some kind of engine noise, when they've become "road-wise." But my Mom-In-Law lives in a wooded, upscale neighborhood. Local squirrels love her place because her trees had a bumper crop of acorns. But, I have seen a few heart-breaking squirrel/car accidents, all in about the same place. This never happened before. There is a neighbor down the road with an electric car that is perfectly silent, and I wonder if there is any connection. Has anyone else seen this situation?

[LR]

You would think that they would still catch the sound of wheels on the pavement.

[Stanley]

Thanks all for responding. I think if squirrels are expecting car/truck engine noise, and do not specifically pick that up, the quiet hiss of tires would not necessarily alert them into their "caution" behavior when trying to cross the road. And, I am presuming here a lot of drivers speed. Also, I just wonder in general is this going to be a growing problem everywhere as people switch over to electric?

[Lighten-Up]

Thanks all for responding. I think if squirrels are expecting car/truck engine noise, and do not specifically pick that up, the quiet hiss of tires would not necessarily alert them into their "caution" behavior when trying to cross the road. And, I am presuming here a lot of drivers speed. Also, I just wonder in general is this going to be a growing problem everywhere as people switch over to electric?

Your point is a possible reality. I have already pondered this. I don't like loud engines, they interrupt the quiet of nature. But thinking about the silence of fast powered engines, I realize there will be a kick-back to it--we won't hear them coming. We will all adjust in time, even the squirrels...

A funny note on the silence of electric motors. I have an acquaintance that bought an electric vehicle. They discovered that they had left the car running all night in their garage. The engine was so quiet, they forgot to turn the car off. :grin2

As you mentioned in your last post, people and animals have been programmed to recognize cars by their noise, it will take some new learning to recognize cars by things other than their noise.

[JLM27]

I myself was almost hit by a Tesla here in Massachusetts. They are eerie. You might think I'm demented, but when I see squirrels out front of my house, I give them a royal bawling out if they even go near the edge of the street. I also pray for them. I HATE when I see a slaughtered squirrel.

[Stanley]

Yes, it's very sad, and the car is the number 1 enemy of wild squirrels as it is. I just wonder if, given sufficient evidence of harm to wildlife from silent running vehicles, some kind of state government mandate can be instituted to give electric cars a "warning" sound feature that only animals can here, analogous to a dog whistle. It would run continuously, but no one would know about it, except the poor wild animals who would then at least have some heads up.

[JLM27]

It is a real and present danger to humans, too. There is a "deer whistle", very cheap, that you can fasten under your car to warn deer with a sound that humans can't hear. Perhaps these could be used? The motion of the car runs the air through the whistle.

https://www.amazon.com/Bell-Automotive-22-1-01000-8-Black-Warning/dp/B000CC4O58/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1512083661&sr=8-1&keywords=car+deer+whistle

[Mel1959]

It is a real and present danger to humans, too. There is a "deer whistle", very cheap, that you can fasten under your car to warn deer with a sound that humans can't hear. Perhaps these could be used? The motion of the car runs the air through the whistle.

https://www.amazon.com/Bell-Automotive-22-1-01000-8-Black-Warning/dp/B000CC4O58/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1512083661&sr=8-1&keywords=car+deer+whistle

That’s awesome! I never knew something like that existed. It makes me wonder why they aren’t installed by auto manufacturers in all cars. :tap