Abstract
Author(s): Shilling, Fraser M; Waetjen, David P | Abstract: Highways provide commuter traffic and goods movement among regions and cities through wild, protected areas. Wildlife-vehicle collisions (WVC) can occur frequently when wildlife are present, impacting drivers and animals. Because collisions are often avoidable with constructed mitigation and reduced speeds, transportation agencies often want to know where they can act most effectively and what kinds of mitigation are cost-effective. For this study, WVC occurrences were obtained from two sources: 1) highway agencies that monitor carcass retrieval and disposal by agency maintenance staff and 2) opportunistic observations of carcasses by participants in two statewide systems, the California Roadkill Observation System (CROS; http://wildlifecrossing.net/california) and the Maine Audubon Wildlife Road Watch (MAWRW; http://wildlifecrossing.net/maine). Between September, 2009 and December 31, 2014, g33,700 independent observations of g450 vertebrate species had been recorded in these online, form-based informatics systems by g1,300 observers. We asked whether or not WVC observations collected by these extensive, volunteer-science networks could be used to inform transportation-mitigation planning. Cluster analyses of volunteer-observed WVC were performed using spatial autocorrelation tests for parts or all of 34 state highways and interstates. Statistically-significant WVC hotspots were modeled using the Getis- Ord Gi* statistic. High density locations of WVC, that were not necessarily hotspots, were also visualized. Statistically-significant hotspots were identified along ~7,900 km of highways. These hotspots are shown to vary in position from year to year. For highways with frequent deer-vehicle collisions, annual costs fromcollisions ranged from US$0 to gUS$30,000/km. Carcass clusters from volunteer data had very little or no overlap with similar findings from agency-collected WVC data, during a different time-range. We show that both state agency-collected and volunteer-collection of WVC observations could be useful in prioritizing mitigation action at US state-scales by state transportation agencies to protect biodiversity and driver safety. Because of the spatial extent and taxonomic accuracy at which volunteer observations can be collected, these may be the most important source of data for transportation agencies to protect drivers and wildlife.
Highlights
Wildlife-vehicle collisions (WVC) are a large and growing concern among Departments of Transportation (DOT), conservation organizations and agencies, and the driving public (Huijser et al 2008)
We demonstrate that volunteer observations of WVC from across a broad taxonomic range can be used in WVC hotspot identification on state highways
The opportunistic wildlife observations in our systems may provide the raw data for statistical analyses of proximate contributors to wildlife-vehicle collisions and planning for minimizing WVC impacts on wildlife and drivers
Summary
Wildlife-vehicle collisions (WVC) are a large and growing concern among Departments of Transportation (DOT), conservation organizations and agencies, and the driving public (Huijser et al 2008). WVC occur when traffic coincides with a place where animals decide to cross the surface of a roadway. Predicting and prioritizing these places for mitigation of impacts to wildlife and drivers is an important step in reducing the conflict. To inform these types of predictions and corresponding mitigation at a large scale (e.g., a US state), it becomes necessary to collect accurate, extensive, long-term WVC data
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
