Designing wildlife-vehicle conflict observation systems to inform ecology and transportation studies. (November 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Shilling, Fraser; Collinson, Wendy; Bil, Michal; Vercayie, Diemer; Heigl, Florian; Perkins, Sarah E.; MacDougall, Sandra
• Is Part Of: Biological conservation. Volume 251(2020)
• Publication Date: 2020-11
• Subjects: WVC wildlife vehicle conflict -- CHIPs California Highway Incident Reporting System -- CROS California Roadkill Observation System -- AWW Alberta Wildlife Watch -- DOW Dieren onder de wielen Natuurpunt -- SZ Srazenazver.cz Czech Republic -- MAWRW Maine Audubon Wildlife Road Watch -- PR Project Roadkill -- PS Project Splatter -- RW Road Watch -- SPNI Society for Protection of Nature in Israel -- WI Wildlife Incident; Citizen science -- Data collection -- Road ecology -- Wildlife vehicle collision -- Carcass reporting systems; Conservation of natural resources -- Periodicals; Nature conservation -- Periodicals; Ecology -- Periodicals; Environment -- Periodicals; Environmental Pollution -- Periodicals; Electronic journals; 333.9516
• DOI: 10.1016/j.biocon.2020.108797
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0006-3207

Abstract

Abstract: Globally, wildlife-vehicle conflict (WVC) fragments wildlife populations (due to road/traffic-aversion), kills and injures individual animals, can cause wildlife population declines, may eventually contribute to local or total extinction of certain species, and can harm vehicles and drivers. Preventing WVC begins with recording locations of conflict, such as vehicle crashes, animal carcasses (roadkill), or animal behavior around roads, such as avoidance of roads or crossing-behavior. These data are ideally used to inform transportation policy and planning and to retrofit roadways and their structures to reduce WVC. We are collectively involved with or manage eight regional or national systems for reporting WVC in collaboration with volunteers and/or agency staff. In this review, we survey systems for recording WVC by volunteers and agency staff at different geographical scales, based on existing literature and our personal experience. We report the range of data collection methods, data management systems and data visualizations employed as well as discuss the groups and type of volunteers and agencies involved. We use our expertise and the global survey to provide methodological specifications based on current best-practice for collecting and using WVC data to inform transportation and conservation decisions. We conclude with a vision of next steps toward a global network of WVC reporting systems, that have clear and practical applications for improved conservation research as well as guidelines for management of road networks. Highlights: Fifteen large-extent web-systems for reporting wildlife-vehicle-conflict were reviewed. Methods for data collection, management, visualization, and sharing are described. Most systems converge on primary principles for goals, informatics, and participation. Recommendations provided for creating novel WVC-reporting systems.