There are some places in the United States, where drivers have to take caution over crossing deer.
In Australia, though, it's unpredictable, hopping kangaroos that are the culprits for the most car accidents involving animals.
That being said, continuing to be a trendsetter in regards to automotive safety, Volvo is testing a software detection system in which its cars' brakes will automatically be applied if it anticipates an accident is about to happen. According to the BBC, Volvo specifically had kangaroos in mind for its safety system, even studying the roadside behavior of the animals and using it toward their detection and accident-avoidance technology.
To get a better sense of how pesky kangaroos are to Australian drivers, Volvo used statistics from the National Roads and Motorists' Association, which reported 20,000 kangaroo-vehicle accidents across the country annually.
"Kangaroos are very unpredictable animals and difficult to avoid, but we are confident we can refine our animal detection technology to detect them and avoid collisions on the highway," Volvo's safety engineer Martin Magnusson told the BBC.
According to the BBC, Volvo will detect the animals via a radar embedded in the cars' front girll and a high-res camera on the windshield.
Magnusson told the BBC that to prepare for this testing in Australia, Volvo conducted research in Sweden involving bigger, slower animals such as cows, reindeer and elk.
"Kangaroos are smaller than these animals and their behavior is more erratic," he said.
This system will drive Volvo's approach to safety up another notch.
