On my way to work this morning I noticed a few pigeons on the road up ahead. Then, as I was getting closer, one particular bird caught my eye because it was facing the opposite direction of an oncoming Astrovan. Well, the pigeon flew away just as the van approached but it came into my lane and - ! I saw one of it's wings twitching in my rearview mirror. When I got to my parking space I crossed my fingers and crouched down to survey the damage. Luckily, the bird either hit below the bumper and/or all the contact was with feathers. It was a pretty cool incident since there was no damage. Does anyone else have any stories about close calls with wildlife?

 

twice, driving birds on the side of the road took off as i approached, but i was driving a little faster that the speed limit, and clipped em with my windshield. luckily neither incident was with my 8.

 

This guy's story will be hard to beat.

 

One flew into the top of my windshield when I was driving my old Miata (had the top down, too!). Feathers flew EVERYWHERE, and for a second I thought the poor thing might land in the car. But, it just blew right over the back and onto the road. Not a chance it survived...

 

I've hit a seagull once... man that was funny :p

 

I've hit so many birds for some reason, it's not even funny. I've hit 3 with my 96 Blazer when I had it. Two on the freeway when they were flying across, and then one on a residential road when two birds were flying across and I hit one and clipped the other. Feathers flew all over, I saw one of the birds twirl off to the side of the road, but I didn't know where the other one went so I expected the worse. I got home and slowly looked around to the hood of the car and the bird was dead stuck in my grille. It's neck go snapped around my front grille and we had to take it out, it was disgusting.

Then, with my RX-8 I've hit a bird flying across the road. It hit my front hood and slid up on it and then over my car. I was so pissed because I was certain there was going to be a dent or scratch marks. I pull over to the side of the road and theres nothing but some feathers and blood. I was relieved but I have a really bad time with birds.

 

Hit a small bird once in my Protege5. He tried to fly away, I tried to brake but it was to late.

WHAM!

Hits the front bumper and does a flipping half twist over the hood and right into the windshield....stuck to the wiper.

So here I am driving down the road with a dead bird, wing flapping in the wind right smack in front of me. Passing people who look over with a WTF? look.

poor birdy

 

I hit a Pigeon with my old Sentra. It flew across the 404 right in front of me as I was doing 125. It hint the windshield and disappeared behind the car in a shower of feathers. No damage done. To the car that is.

 

When I lived in florida I was trailing this little truck, like a VW or a ranger or something. It had a Camper in the bed. Anyway, there are always these big white egrets on the shoulders down there. Long neck, sharp beak, long orange legs. Maybe three feet high. There are so many you dont really notice them and they never cross the road or anything. But I guess one got spooked by an aligator or something and it flew real low over the road. As it crossed infront of the truck in front of me, I fully expected to see it come out the other side. Alas, no. No burst of feathers (just a few); it just disappeared. I accelerated to see the damage. As I passed the guy, he didnt even seem to have notice anything, but on the grill of the truck was this bird, literally crucified---wings out to both sides, head back over the hood and one long orange leg, still kicking, kicking, in this circular motion that I can still see in my head to this day.

 

In my 84 rx-7 , i was flying down a country road one day, and (no AC, windows down) i hear 'FFFWWWWHIPPP' by my head, and instantly 'BANG' from behind me... I look around and don't see anything.... but...

at about 145 km/h , a swallow had been sucked into my drivers side window, and smashed on the inside of the rear windshield - i found it, dead, broken neck and wings, on the back hatch....

 

I nailed a crow in a full-sized Chevy van at nearly 80 MPH. Hit the windshield dead-center and head-on.
Most of the bird dissapeared in a puff of blood and feathers.
Made a really cool sound.

 

...Some of you guys sound like you don't care about the birds' lives...pretty sickening

I have never hit an animal/bird, I always hit/cover my brakes when I see animals loittering around (squirrels, birds, cats). Of course it's not always possible to avoid them, but you guys have sickening accounts and usage of words.

 

I think that's because some people don't care about the birds lives. At least I don't. I don't go out of my way to kill birds with a car, but you won't see me shedding a tear if one gets in the way of my car, unless it damages the car. What do you want people to do? have birdie funerals? say a prayer? go tell it's freinds? honestly.

And before you tell me I'm a jerk etc etc, I have on more than one occasion taken wild animals/birds to a vetrinary clinic because I found them hobbling around on or near my property.

 

Bah. I actively seek to kill wild animals.
I'll put myself in harm's way just to vaporize a scavenger or two.
There is nothing from which I derive greater joy.
To me, driving is a means to an end - the end of something small and furry or feathered.

I mean, really - why else would I possibly drive a Chevy van that fast?

 

Hmm. Some... interesting posts, to say the least.

Birds hit ME. I've had three different types of fowl splat into the SIDES of my car, at some point, invariably while I was stopped at a light. Never in the RX-8, however.

 

Ran over a squirrel today... moving up the food chain.