Often Australian road users are busy dodging kangaroos, sleepy lizards, emus and galahs.
One creature you might not expect to see crossing a road is a turtle.
Senior research fellow at Charles Sturt University Albury Damian Michael said there were three different types of turtles in the country's south east, but the eastern long-necked turtle enjoyed travelling the most.
The turtles have been spotted on roads around the Riverina and Central West in NSW after significant downpours and flooding.
But why are these shelled reptiles so frequently seen on the road lately?
Dr Michael said their journeys were usually triggered by rain and, put simply, one of the reasons they set off was to find a sexual partner.
"They are not attracted to the road per se like other animals, such as dragons, that heat up on the road," he said.
"What this rain is doing is basically ensuring that there are a lot of refuges across the landscape and hopefully there's going to be a lot of hatchling turtles that come out of this season."
He said another reason why eastern long-necked turtles moved around was if there was a lack of resources.
"It might be because one pond is dying down, the resources in that pond have been depleted and they're moving to find another pond," Dr Michael said.
Beware of pee-like substance
Dr Michael advised motorists to slow down to avoid hitting the turtle and, if safe to do so, pull over to the side of the road to offer assistance.
"It's hard to know which direction they are actually going. They could have been spun around by a car, [so moving them to] either side of the road is fine," he said.
"They have a pretty good sense of orientation in the landscape."
He warned people should try not to come across as scary, otherwise it might yield an unwanted surprise.
"Generally we recommend people keep the turtles fairly low to the ground and don't lift them right up," Dr Michael said.
"It's technically not really urine because most reptiles like to excrete a very concentrated uric paste, much like birds do.
"It is largely water they have absorbed from the wetland. They can also introduce some foul-smelling chemicals into that bladder as a defensive mechanism, so often turtles give off a very foul smell."
Dr Michael urged people to be aware that turtles are on the move.
"Respect your turtles and please, if you do see one on the road, slow down," he said.
