What does the Deer Crossing sign mean?
The Deer Crossing sign (MUTCD W11-3) is a warning sign under the federal Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, the national standard the states build from. A known route for deer and other large game across the pavement, busiest at first light and again at dusk. One animal in the road is usually followed by a second.
Source: MUTCD 11th Edition, Chapter 2C, Table 2C-1, checked 2026-09-09.
What shape and color is the Deer Crossing sign?
| MUTCD code | W11-3 |
|---|---|
| Group | Warning signs |
| Shape | Diamond |
| Color | Yellow background, black animal symbol and border |
What a diamond means. A warning. It tells you what the road does next and obliges you to do nothing in particular, which is the distinction test writers probe most often.
What yellow means. General warning of a permanent condition ahead.
Warning signs. A diamond reports a condition and orders nothing. What you do about it is left to you, and that gap between a report and an order is what test writers keep probing.
What is the Deer Crossing sign often mistaken for?
The other large-animal signs in the same family, W11-4, W11-16 through W11-22, which use cattle, moose, elk, sheep and other silhouettes. The tested action is identical for all of them.
What does the permit test ask about the Deer Crossing sign?
This question is from the practice bank, with the answer marked.
This sign means:
- A.A wildlife refuge is nearby
- B.Animals cross here and you should expect more than one(correct answer)
- C.Hunting is permitted alongside the road
- D.Livestock are fenced off the roadway
Source: MUTCD W11-3
What are the other warning signs?
All 55 warning signs on one page, or every US road sign by shape and color.
Test yourself on this sign and the rest of the set with a road signs practice test for Florida, Texas or California.
The artwork is the federal design itself, which the manual dedicates to the public domain in MUTCD 11th Edition, Part 1, Section 1D.06, checked 2026-09-09. The Interstate Shield, the 511 pictograph and the National Scenic Byway graphic are named exceptions and are not reproduced anywhere on this site.
Source: Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices, 11th Edition. Not affiliated with or endorsed by the Federal Highway Administration or any state agency.