Why Are So Many Deer Jumping 120 Feet to Their Deaths Off This Idaho Bridge?

One animal acting strangely can be puzzling -- like the moose walking in tight circles in a Vermont backyard in September -- but hundreds of animals committing suicide can be downright alarming. Take the hundreds of deer jumping off an Idaho bridge.

KBOI 2 reported that from High Bridge on Highway 21 east of Boise several drivers have reported seeing deer make a flying leap to their deaths. Even wildlife officials have seen it themselves.

(Image: KBOI 2 screenshot)

"I've seen it myself and some of our staff have seen it too," Evin Oneale, big game manager for the Idaho Fish and Game Department, said according to KBOI 2.

Oneale believes the deer become scared by oncoming vehicles, assume the jump over the bridge's railing will lead to solid ground on the other side and find out differently when it's too late.

"They jump over what they think is just into the barrow pit, but it's a 120-foot fall to the river below," Oneale said.

For this reason, the wildlife department with the DOT built an underpass in 2010, which KBOI 2 reports officials saying has been successful. But the area is encouraging motorists to drive slowly over the bridge where the skittish animals might still be crossing.

Watch the report:

Featured image via Shutterstock.com. 

(H/T: GeekoSystem, CBS Local)