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Florida driving lesson · Special Situations and Emergencies

Animals and low visibility

A 3-minute lesson from the Florida course. Read the rules and examples, follow the handbook page references, and check your understanding before you move on.

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Read time
3 minutes
Course unit
Special Situations and Emergencies
Checkpoint questions
6
Source pages
79, 80

Two Florida hazards catch drivers off guard: animals darting into the road, and smoke, fog or heavy rain that hide everything. With animals the instinct to swerve is usually wrong. In low visibility you need to see and be seen.

Know the rule

Don't swerve into oncoming traffic or off the road to avoid an animal. That can cause a worse crash than hitting it.

Handbook p. 79 ↗

To reduce your chances of hitting an animal:

  • Use caution at dawn and dusk, when animals are most active
  • Be extra alert near animal crossing signs, woods and water
  • Scan the roadsides for your headlights reflecting in animals' eyes
Handbook p. 79 ↗
October–December

When deer/vehicle crashes happen most often

Handbook p. 79 ↗

If an animal is present:

  • Slow down near animals standing by the road; they may bolt or change direction
  • Flash your headlights to warn other drivers about animals on or near the road
  • If you have time: slow down, tap your brakes and sound your horn
  • If no one is close behind, brake hard without locking the wheels
  • If a collision can't be avoided, don't swerve; keep control and stay on the road
  • Report a crash with a large animal such as a bear, deer or farm animal to law enforcement
Handbook p. 79 ↗

Know the rule

Deer tend to fixate on headlights, so flashing them may make the animal freeze.

Handbook p. 79 ↗

In smoke, fog or heavy rain:

  • You must turn on your headlights; parking lights are not a substitute
  • Use low beams; high beams reflect off fog and make visibility worse
  • Turn on headlights whenever you turn on your wipers
  • Use wipers and defrosters for maximum visibility
  • Use the right edge of the road, edge lines and center lines as guides
Handbook p. 79 ↗

Also in low visibility:

  • Eliminate distractions: turn off the radio, cell phone and so on
  • Watch for slow-moving and parked vehicles
  • Keep your windshield and headlights clean to cut glare
Handbook p. 80 ↗

Know the rule

It can be hard to tell whether poor visibility is caused by fog or by moisture on the windshield, so use your wipers and defroster.

Handbook p. 79 ↗

Put it into practice

Driving at dusk in November near a wooded area, you spot a deer standing at the roadside. Slow down, tap your brakes, sound your horn and flash your lights to warn other drivers. If it leaps out and you can't stop, brake and keep straight rather than swerving.

Check your understanding

Read the question, decide on an answer, then open it to check the explanation. These are Roadwise study questions based on the source handbook.

If an animal suddenly runs in front of your vehicle, what should you avoid doing?
  1. Braking at all
  2. Sounding your horn
  3. Swerving into oncoming traffic or off the roadway to avoid it
  4. Flashing your headlights

Answer: Swerving into oncoming traffic or off the roadway to avoid it

Do not swerve into oncoming traffic or off the roadway to avoid hitting an animal; this can cause a more serious crash.

Handbook p. 79 ↗
During what months do deer/vehicle crashes occur most often in Florida?
  1. April to June
  2. January to March
  3. July to September
  4. October to December

Answer: October to December

Deer/vehicle crashes occur most often from October to December.

Handbook p. 79 ↗
According to the handbook, what may happen if you flash your headlights at a deer near the road?
  1. The deer may freeze in place
  2. The deer will run off the road
  3. The deer will charge the car
  4. It has no effect on deer

Answer: The deer may freeze in place

Deer tend to fixate on headlights, so flashing them may cause the animal to freeze.

Handbook p. 79 ↗
If a collision with an animal is unavoidable, what should you do?
  1. Accelerate to pass over it quickly
  2. Stay in control; don't swerve
  3. Brake hard and steer sharply toward the shoulder
  4. Swerve sharply to avoid contact

Answer: Stay in control; don't swerve

If a collision is inevitable, do not swerve to avoid the animal; keep your vehicle under control and on the roadway.

Handbook p. 79 ↗
In low-visibility conditions like fog, what should you use instead of high beams?
  1. Hazard lights only
  2. No headlights at all
  3. Low beam headlights
  4. Parking lights only

Answer: Low beam headlights

Drive with lights on low beam in low visibility; high beams will reflect off the fog and impair visibility even more.

Handbook p. 79 ↗
When driving in smoke or fog, what should you use as visual guides?
  1. The road's edge lines and center lines
  2. Other vehicles' taillights only
  3. The centerline of oncoming traffic only
  4. GPS navigation only

Answer: The road's edge lines and center lines

Use the right edge of the road, edge lines, and center lines as visual guides in low visibility.

Handbook p. 79 ↗
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