Hunters in Estonia who are concerned about animals causing traffic accidents when crossing roads have followed the example of several European countries in installing deterrent reflectors on roads, "Aktuaalne kaamera" reported on Saturday.

The project was launched in Estonia last spring and was has been so successful the European hunters' federation FACE picked it as its November project. Reflectors in Pärnu County differ from those used elsewhere in Estonia.

The three-year project is meant to determine whether the reflectors have an effect on animal behavior.

Member of the board of the Estonian Hunters' Society Jaanus Põldmaa said that hunters in Europe use various kinds of reflectors and Estonia is also looking for different solutions.

"They are also priced differently. We are using somewhat different reflectors on this road section. While the other kind of reflector is not spotted by drivers at night, this one is clearly visible also for humans," Põldmaa said.

The reflector's blue light is a signal that there is the possibility of animals crossing the road.

Hunters have installed more reflectors than initially planned by today. Their effect was evident early on that encouraged new hunting clubs to join the project.

"We have installed over 800 reflectors on 23 road sections in Estonia. This is almost double the initial target. The sections in question have not seen a single animal killed since then," said project manager for "Game on Road" ("Ulukid teel") Urmas Salmu.

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