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COLUMBIA, MO. (AP) -- Drivers in Missouri have a pretty good chance of striking a deer.

A study from State Farm Insurance Cos. shows that compared with other states, a Missouri driver's chances are higher than about two-thirds of the country.

The Columbia Daily Tribune reports that the study puts the risk of a Missouri driver striking a deer at 1 in 134 in the next 12
months. That means Missouri ranks 16th in the nation.

The average property damage cost from a deer collision is about $3,000.

Lonnie Hansen, a resource scientist for the Missouri Department of Conservation, says urban areas pose the biggest threat to
drivers and to deer. In Missouri, nine of the top 10 counties where deer strikes are the most numerous are urbanized.

(Copyright ©2010 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)