Journal of Threatened Taxa |
www.threatenedtaxa.org | 26 April 2023 | 15(4): 23016–23028
ISSN 0974-7907
(Online) | ISSN 0974-7893 (Print)
https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.8128.15.4.23016-23028
#8128 | Received 02
August 2022 | Final received 31 March 2023 | Finally accepted 12 April 2023
Vertebrate road kills on State
Highway 26 in Khandwa Forest Division, central India
Kamran Husain 1 & Prachi Mehta 2
1,2 Wildlife Research and
Conservation Society, 1A Shreeyog, 127/3, Sus Road, Pashan, Pune,
Maharashtra 411021, India.
1 kamran.wild95@gmail.com, 2 prachimehta@wrcsindia.org
(corresponding author)
Editor: L.A.K. Singh, Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India. Date of publication: 26 April
2023 (online & print)
Citation: Husain, K. & P. Mehta (2023). Vertebrate road kills on State
Highway 26 in Khandwa Forest Division, central India. Journal of Threatened Taxa 15(4): 23016–23028. https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.8128.15.4.23016-23028
Copyright: © Husain & Mehta 2023. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. JoTT allows
unrestricted use, reproduction, and distribution of this article in any medium
by providing adequate credit to the author(s) and the source of publication.
Funding: Madhya Pradesh Biodiversity Board, Raptor Research and Conservation Foundation, and Department of Science and Technology.
Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.
Author details: Kamran Husain is a research biologist with WRCS (Wildlife Research and Conservation Society). Kaman is currently working on radio-telemetry studies of owls in Melghat Tiger Reserve. Prachi Mehta is a senior scientist with WRCS and is working on ecology of owls and human-elephant coexistence mitigation in the country.
Author contributions: PM—funds for the project, concept of the paper, data analysis and writing of the paper. KH—part of field data collection, preparation of maps and compiling initial draft.
Acknowledgements: This paper is a part of ongoing
research project on owls in central India. We thank Akshay
Anand and Jabbar Singh for their help. We are
grateful to the officers of Madhya Pradesh Forest Department for their
long-term support for our project. We thank Madhya Pradesh State Biodiversity
Board (Bhopal), Raptor Research and Conservation Foundation (Mumbai), and
Department of Science and Technology (New Delhi) for financial support for the
project.
Abstract: The road network is spreading
rapidly in human dominated as well as forested areas in India. Roads passing
through forested areas are known to negatively impact wildlife populations by
contributing to wildlife-road kills besides causing habitat fragmentation, soil
erosion, and disruption of gene flow. This paper documents encounters of
wildlife road kills on the State Highway 26 (SH 26) passing through the
forested area of Khandwa Territorial Forests in central India. Between October
2015 and June 2017 and from November 2021 to June 2022 we collected
opportunistic data on wildlife mortalities on SH 26. We recorded 61 wildlife
mortalities on a stretch of 34 km of SH 26. Of the road kills encountered, 71%
were birds, 21% were mammals, and 8% were herpetofauna. Highest among bird
kills were members of nightjars (Caprimulgidae) (26%)
and owls (Strigidae) (23%). Among owls, we recorded two road kills of the
endangered Forest Owlet Athene blewitti and
individuals of five other owl species. Among other taxa, road-hits of Jungle
Cat, Indian Palm Civet, Golden Jackal, Central Indian Langur, and a few snakes
were recorded. Most bird kills on the road were recorded in February while the
highest number of mammal and herpetofauna kills were recorded in the month of
November. We report that the land use around the road and species trait
contribute to vulnerability of a species to road-hit. Based on the frequency of
road kills, we have identified seven hotspots of road kills on SH 26. Since
road construction is one of the major mandates of the Government in India, it
is suggested to carry out systematic environment impact assessment on existing
and proposed roads to understand the patterns of spatio-temporal
incidents of road kills. Planting of tall trees and installation of speed bumps
and signboards to alert drivers should be planned at the initial stage of road
construction. If appropriate mitigation measures to prevent wildlife
mortalities are incorporated while the road is being constructed, it may be
possible to bridge the gap between development and conservation.
Keywords: Animal-vehicle collision,
conservation, Forest Owlet, Jungle Cat, Madhya Pradesh, wildlife-friendly road,
wildlife mortalities.
Introduction
India has 62.16 lakh kilometres of road network, which is the second largest
road network in the world after the USA (GOI 2022). While road network is
critical to development, it has severe social, environmental, and ecological
impacts on the biodiversity and natural resources. Vast stretches of roads
passing through natural habitats are known to cause forest fragmentation
(Forman & Alexander 1998), wildlife-vehicle collisions (Andrews 1990;
Underhill & Angold 1999; Baskaran & Boominathan 2010; Raman 2011; Gubbi et al. 2012; Jeganathan et al. 2018; Saxena et al. 2020), increased
predatory activity (Ortega & Capen 1999), habitat
loss, disruption of corridors, loss of population heterogeneity, & genetic
variability (Reh & Seitz 1990; Clark et al.
2010), and soil erosion, landslides, degradation of surrounding forests, &
water pollution (Rajvanshi et al. 2001; Goosem et al. 2010; Raman 2011; Lyamuya
et al. 2021).
While a small animal may get
overridden, a large one will collide with the vehicle causing an accident
and/or death. For all such instances, we have used the term wildlife-vehicle
collision (WVC). Incidents of wildlife mortalities due to collision with
speeding vehicles (WVC) in forested landscapes has far-reaching implications
compared to poaching, hunting or natural death as WVC can also affect healthy
individuals, leading to loss of genetic flow, subsequently resulting in
population decline or isolation (Sutherland et al. 2010; Jackson & Fahrig 2011). Roadkill rates are attributed to the type of
road, speed of the vehicles, and traffic volume (Forman & Alexander 1998;
Underhill & Angold 1999; Clevenger et al. 2003;
Saxena et al. 2020). Land use by the roadside has a major impact on accelerated
rates of road kills. Presence of agricultural fields, forest patches, ditches,
wetlands, canal crossing, shrubby vegetation and uneven height of road have
been identified as hotspots of road kills (Main & Allen 2002; Mackinnon et
al. 2005; Özcan & Ozkazanc
2017). Species traits such as group living animals, large home ranges, high
dispersal rate,s and poikilothermic species are most
likely targets of road kills (Saxena et al. 2020). Diet and morphometry of a
species contributes to their vulnerability to road kills. Species feeding on
rodents, insects, and carcass are vulnerable to road causalities since their
life traits make them an easy victims of road kills (Adams & Geis 1983;
Main & Allen 2002; Silva et al. 2019; Underhill & Angold
1999; Medrano-Vizcaíno et al. 2022).
The studies on road kills from
India and outside India have commonly reported mortalities of mammals (Reed et
al. 1979; Lavsund & Sandegren
1991; Behera & Borah 2010; Gubbi et al. 2012; Saxena et al. 2020; Lyamuya et al. 2022), birds (Channing 1958; Dunthorn & Errington 1964; Dhindsa
et al. 1988; Sundar 2004; daRosa
& Bager 2012; Bishop & Brogan 2013; Siva &
Neelnarayanan 2020; Sacramento at al. 2022), and
herpetofauna (Vos & Chardron 1998; Aresco 2005; Langen et al. 2007; Glista et al. 2008; Baskaran & Boominathan
2010; Bhupathy et al. 2011; Quintero-Ángel et al. 2012; Samson et al. 2016; Jegannathan
et al. 2018; Pallares & Joya 2018; Hastings et
al. 2019). In India, the majority of studies on WVC have been carried out on
national highways (NH) passing through protected areas of Western Ghats (Kumara et al. 2002; Seshadri et al. 2009; Baskaran & Boominathan 2010; Santhoshkumar
et al. 2017), Madhya Pradesh (Pragatheesh 2011; Pragatheesh & Rajvanshi 2013;
Saxena et al. 2020), Karnataka (Hatti & Mubeen 2019), Rajasthan (Sharma &
Dhakad 2020; Kumawat &
Purohit 2020), Himalayan region (Kumar & Srinivasulu
2015; Kichloo et al. 2020), and Assam (Das et al.
2007; Choudhury & Ghosh 2008; Sur et al. 2022).
The state of Madhya Pradesh has a
vast network of roads measuring up to 70,156 km which includes 8,000 km of
national highways, 8,728 km of state highways (SH), 22,129 km of district
roads, and 28,623 km of rural and other roads (GOI 2022). Earlier studies on
wildlife road kills from Madhya Pradesh have been carried out on NHs passing
through Pench Tiger Reserve and Satpura
Tiger Reserve (Pragatheesh 2011; Pragatheesh
& Rajvanshi 2013; Saxena et al. 2020) but there
is no published information on road kills outside the protected areas in the
state. In this paper, we describe wildlife mortalities encountered on the State
Highway 26 (SH 26) passing through the forested area of Khandwa District. The
objectives of our study were (i) to assess which taxa
are represented in the road kills and (ii) to identify the locations that
record most wildlife mortalities. In the light of a recent notification on SH
26 proposed to be widened from a 2-lane state highway to a 4-lane national
highway, the findings and recommendations of this paper would be of
considerable importance since we describe the hotspots of the road kills and
suggest precautionary measures and mechanisms to reduce wildlife kills on SH
26.
Study Area
We recorded the road kills on the
SH 26 that passes through Khandwa Forest Division in Khandwa District (21.82590N,
76.36780E) of Madhya Pradesh (Figure 1). Both sides of the road were
bordered by dry deciduous teak Tectona grandis forests and crop fields. Teak is the dominant
species in the forests with associated species such as Anogeissus
latifolia, Lannea
coromendelica, Terminalia alata,
Butea monosperma, Diospyros melanoxylon, and Garuga
pinnata. Bamboo was found mainly in hilly region
of the road. Very few houses were close to the highway as villages were settled
further away from the road. The topography in the area is hilly with gently
sloping terrain interspersed with plain tracts of land. The elevation ranges
300–700 m. Among large mammals, the presence of Bengal Tiger Panthera tigris,
Leopard Panthera pardus
fusca, Jungle Cat Felis
chaus, Chinkara Gazella
benettii, Sambar Rusa
unicolor, Nilgai Boselaphus tragocamelus, Four-horned Antelope Tetracerus
quadricornis, and Wild Boar Sus
scrofa have been recorded from the area (Shukla
2013). The area supports diverse avifauna and notable among them is the
presence of the ‘Endangered’ and a central India endemic Forest Owlet Athene
blewitti. Among other owls, the widely
distributed Barn Owl Tyto alba, Indian
Eagle Owl Bubo bengalensis, Mottled Wood Owl Strix ocellata,
Indian Scops Owl Otus
bakkamoena, Jungle Owlet Glaucidium
radiatum, and Spotted Owlet Athene brama have been recorded from here (Mehta et al.
2018). The region is inhabited by Korku and
Gond tribes who practice sustenance agriculture. From June to December, farmers
grow Paddy, Wheat, Maize, and pulses. Crop harvesting takes place during
January to March, and the fields are fallow in April and May.
The SH 26 connects Khargone District to Amarkantak
District in Madhya Pradesh State. This stretch of 45 km passes through Ashapura Village till Jhinjari
Village in Khandwa Forest Division traversing the forests of Kalibhit connecting the Khandwa District to Betul District. Heavy vehicles such as multi-axle trucks,
passenger buses, other four wheelers and two wheelers drive through the SH from
morning to night. Most of the highway passes through teak dominant and
teak-mixed forests of East Kalibhit, West Kalibhit, and Awaliya, having
several crop fields and very few habitations by the roadside.
Methods
Since 2012, we have been carrying
out ecological research on the Forest Owlet and other owls in Khandwa District
of Madhya Pradesh. Every day, between
0600 h & 1100 h and 1600 h & 1900 h, we used to drive at the speed of
20 to 40 km/h by a jeep or a motorcycle on the road to monitor locations of
owls for a stretch of 34 km from Roshani to Jhinjari. On the way, we often observed carcasses of dead
animals by the roadside. From October 2015 to June 2017 and again between
November 2021 to June 2022, we maintained a record of the road kills observed
while driving on the road. The data were collected opportunistically, i.e., as,
and when we came across a road kill. When we spotted a dead animal on the road,
we recorded the following information: date, time of observation, species
killed, and GPS location of the kill. To estimate approximate time of the kill,
we categorised the road kills in two broad
categories, as fresh (killed within last 24 hours) and old (killed over last 24
hours), based on the status of the carcass, skin texture, and blood condition
(after Baskaran & Boominathan 2010). To assess
the topography at the accident spot, we recorded the gradient of the road as
plain, gently sloping, and hilly. For understanding the land use near the
accident spot, we classified the habitat as teak forest, teak mix forest,
agriculture, human habitation, and a combination of the given categories. After
obtaining the data indicated above, we removed the carcass from the road to
prevent double counting (Gomes et al. 2009).
Study segments
In order to have better
understanding and interpretation of the WVC patterns we divided the road into
five segments according to the location of nearby villages and recorded the
landscape features on either side of the segment (Table 1). Study areas 2 and 4
differ in their extent and pattern of cover over agriculture land and teak
forests. We used non-parametric Mann-Whitney U test to compare the frequency of
road kills among different taxa and the number of mortalities between different
road segments. All species encountered in road kills were classified in three
broad categories of feeding guilds (Table 1).
We used the software PAST 4.0 for the analysis.
Results
Type of road kills
During the study, we recorded 61
vertebrate road kills belonging to 31 species from 23 families (Table 2). Of
these, 43 (71%) mortalities were of birds, 13 (21%) kills of mammals and 5
kills (8%) belonged to herpetofauna (Figure 2). In the study area, birds were
more affected taxa in road kills than mammals (Mann Whitney U = 64, P
= 0.001), and herpetofauna (U = 23, P <0.000).
Among the birds, family Caprimulgidae (Nightjars) represented the highest (26%)
number of kills followed by Strigidae (Owls) (23%),
and Cuculidae (Cuckoos) (14%). The most frequently
encountered bird kill was that of the
nightjars followed by Greater Coucal Centropus sinensis,
Indian Roller Coracias benghalensis,
and the Spotted Owlet Athene brama. One species of
dove could not be identified because of its decomposed body. Among the mammals,
members of the family Sciuridae (Squirrels) were most
killed species (31%) followed by Viverridae (Civets)
(15%), and Muridae (rats & mice; 15%) (Figure 4;
Image 2–9). Of the herpetofauna road kills, we found three species of snakes
belonging to two families and one species of toad on the road during the
survey. We found an almost equal number of mortalities of diurnal and nocturnal
species (Table 2).
Type of habitat
Total number of road kills were
significantly higher on segment 2 compared to segment 4 (Mann-Whitney U
= 484, P = 0.049) and segment 5 (U = 463, P = 0.039).
Segment 1 recorded more road kills than segment 4 (U = 453, P = 0.03, Figure
3). Bird, mammal and herpetofauna road
kills were found on segment 1, 2, 3, & 4 while on segment 5 we found road
kills of two Three-striped Palm Squirrels Funambulus
palmarum. However, we did not find significant
differences in number of road kills of different taxa between different
segments (Figure 4).
Monthly patterns of road kills
Most bird road kills were
recorded in February, while the highest number of mammal and herpetofauna kills
were recorded in the month of November (Figure 5). The number of bird road
kills per month was significantly higher than that of mammal kills (U
= 16.5, P = 0.033) and herpetofauna kills (U = 8,
P < 0.00) per month.
A comparison of percentage of
foraging guilds encountered as road kills revealed that the members of
insectivore and carnivore-insectivore guilds were getting killed throughout the
year while seed/fruit/grain feeders were killed mainly between January to May
(Figure 6). Carnivore-insectivore road kills were seen mainly in July and
December. We do not have road kill data of August and September as we did not
monitor the road during those two months.
Discussion
Herpetofauna Road Kills
In India, most studies on road
kills have commonly reported high mortality of amphibians, reptiles, and
mammals (Kumara 2000; Das et al. 2007; Baskaran &
Boominathan 2010; Gubbi et al. 2012; Jeganathan et al. 2018; Kumawat
& Purohit 2020; Saxena et al. 2020; Sur et al. 2022). Among herpetofauna,
snakes are commonly reported taxa of WVC. Ectothermic animals like snakes utilise roadways to regulate their body temperature during
the winter season by resting on them, which makes them easy
victims of road fatalities (Rosen & Lowe 1994). Snakes visit
agricultural fields hunting for rodents (Pragatheesh &
Rajvanshi 2013) and are at the greatest risk of death
because their movement is slower on a smooth road than on other surfaces (Row
et al. 2007). The higher road mortality of amphibians and reptiles could be
attributed to their slow mobility, not reacting quickly to vehicles and the
fact that drivers are less likely to notice these animals because of personal
disregard for the species (Pragatheesh & Rajvanshi 2013). In our study, we found only four road
kills of herpetofauna, including three species of snakes and one species of
Common Indian Toad. We report road kills of Common Krait, Rat Snake, and
Bronze-back Tree Snake, which appear to be victims of road kills commonly (Das
et al. 2007; Baskaran & Boominathan 2010; Pragatheesh & Rajvanshi 2013;
Jeganathan et al. 2018). Bronze-back Tree Snake is an
arboreal species and its presence on the road is indicative of loss of canopy
connectivity induced by road construction (Pragatheesh
& Rajvanshi 2013). The above studies have
reported the maximum mortalities of amphibians and reptiles during the monsoon
months. The lower number of herpetofauna kills in our study may be explained by
the fact that we could not monitor SH 26 during the rainy months of August and
September.
Mammal road kills
Among mammals, we found carcasses
of Jungle Cat, Jackal, Domestic Cat, Rufous-tailed Hare, Palm Civet, and Palm
Squirrels which have also been reported as road kills by other studies (Kumara 2000; Sundar 2004; Behera
& Borah 2010; Baskaran & Boominathan 2010;
Borah 2010; Jeganathan et al. 2018; Saxena et al.
2020; Sur et al. 2022). Nocturnal mammals (carnivores) often forage near the
open areas by the road side hunting for small mammals and insects, and get
temporarily blinded by powerful headlights thus making them victims of speeding
vehicles (Orlowski & Nowak 2006). However, there
was also a kill of a Central Indian Langur, which is a diurnal species. Langurs
and Macaques often sit on the road to pick fallen fruits and grab food that is
thrown out to them from passing vehicles. Langurs are group living animals and
many of them run across the roads, thus increasing their chances of collisions
with vehicles (Baskaran & Boominathan 2010).
Bird road kills
In India, a handful of studies
have discussed the frequency of bird road kills (Dhindsa
et al. 1988; Sundar 2004; Siva & Neelanarayanan 2020). Outside India, several studies have
highlighted the frequency of bird road kills (Hodson 1962; Erritzoe
et al. 2003; Gomes et al. 2009; Cook & Blumstein 2013; Husby
2016). Every year several millions of birds are estimated to die due to road
hits in USA, UK, and Europe (Erickson et al. 2005; Bishop & Brogan 2013; Bíl et al. 2020), indicating the vulnerability of birds to
speeding vehicles.
Our study also reports that avifauna
were the major (71%) victims of the WVC. We recorded 33.33% mortalities of nocturnal birds, which included 11
individuals of nightjars and 11 individuals of owls belonging to seven owl
species (Table 2). Nocturnal birds of prey move along the road side to hunt for
insects collected near street lamps. Pools of water ditches, and wells by the
road side make ideal feeding grounds for predatory birds feeding on amphibians
and reptiles, and therefore get into collision with vehicles (Hernandez 1988).
Studies reporting road kills of nightjars have surmised that nightjars often
sit on the roads to feed on the insects near light posts. Also, during the
breeding season nightjars sit by the road side to incubate their eggs because
roads become warmer at night. The sudden flash of headlights temporarily blinds
the nightjar, and they are unable to fly off (Erritoze
et al. 2003).
Among owls, we recorded two road
kills of the Forest Owlet. In 2015, one breeding male Forest Owlet was found
dead on the road. After the incident, we could not locate the juvenile and the
female in the area. It is likely that the female may have abandoned the area
because the provisioning male had died. In 2022, one more breeding male Forest
Owlet was found dead on the road. Although the Forest Owlet is a diurnal owl,
they hunt during low-light hours during dusk and dawn (Prachi Mehta pers. obs.
2013). Losing an endangered species to road kill is a matter of grave concern
as it has a direct implication on its in-situ conservation. We also report road
kills of large owl species such as the Barn Owl, Mottled Wood Owl, Indian Eagle
Owl, and smaller owl species such as the Jungle Owlet, Indian Scops Owl, and the Spotted Owlet.
Several studies have documented Strigiformes to be common victim of WVC (Hernandez 1988;
Gomes et al. 2009; Baskaran & Boominathan 2011;
Le Gouar et al. 2011; Guinard
et al. 2012; Siva & Neelanarayanan 2020; Sur et
al. 2022). Authors have attributed greater road kills of Strigiformes
to the hunting techniques of owls. Owls, unlike diurnal birds of prey, do not
use hot wind currents to soar in the air but use perch and pounce technique (Mikkola 1983). Many owl species use trees, posts, fences,
and cables as perches to scan the ground for prey (Mehta et al. 2018). Barn Owl
and Eagle Owl often sit on the light pole near agricultural fields to prey on
rodents. Smaller owls such as the Spotted Owlet often perch on low bushes, near
a light source or on the edge of the road to catch insects (Mehta et al. 2018)
and may be getting overrun by a speeding vehicle. Also, illuminated roads
attract invertebrates, which in turn, attract the owls (Hernandez 1988).
Abundance of prey attract owls to roads and flying from one bush to another can
get them killed (Nero & Copland 1981). A combination of hunting technique
and availability of open areas make owls an easy victim of road kills. Large
numbers of mortalities of Strigiformes due to WVC is
an issue of serious conservation concern as it can affect their population
structure (Forman & Alexander 1998; Le Gouar et
al. 2011; this study).
Among the diurnal bird kills, we
observed the carcass of doves, pipits, and coucal,
who often feed by the roadside on the grains (Dhindsa
et al. 1988). Most bird-vehicle collisions occur because of the bird’s quick
flight ability and their tendency to fly across the road (Rilley
et al. 2014). Also, roads that have agricultural land by the side is preferred
by birds for feeding on spilled grains from the agricultural land or feeding on
rodents from the crop field (Dhindsa et al. 1988; Erritoze et al. 2003).
Monthly patterns of road kills
From January to May, crops are
harvested and bagged. During this process, there is a spill
over of grains on the road and an influx of insects and rodents in the
crop fields, which in turn attracts the movement of insectivores,
carnivore-insectivores and seed/fruit/grain feeders near the road. Further
monitoring and data will be required to understand the influence of diet on the
taxa encountered in road kills.
Habitat surrounding the road
On SH 26, road segments 1, 2,
& 3 passed through plain terrain and the road side habitat was mainly teak
forests interspersed with agriculture. Segment 4 passed through hilly terrain
and had teak mixed forests all along the road. Segment 5 passed through plain terrain
with agriculture fields and open forests by the road side. We found maximum
wildlife mortalities of doves, munias, rollers, babblers, nightjars, coucals, owls and mammals such as Jungle Cats, civets,
Jackal on segments 1, 2 and 3. Most of the above species feature in other
studies as road kills (Dhindsa et al. 1988; Sundar 2004). Agriculture fields have plentiful spilled
over grains for granivores, insects for insectivores,
and rodents for birds of prey. Additionally, interspersion of agriculture and
forests forms ‘edge’ habitat which offers foraging opportunities for a variety
of bird (Dhindsa et al. 1988) and mammal species
(Baskaran & Boominathan 2010). The speed of the
vehicle also contributes to the frequency of road kills (Erritzoe
et al. 2003; Saxena et al. 2020). Segments 1, 2, & 3 had plain
terrain therefore vehicles move faster on this stretch of the road. Segment 4
passed through hilly portion, so the vehicles must slow down while driving
through this segment. This could be the reason for relatively lower numbers of
road kills on segment 4. Studies have reported lower frequencies of animal
collision on roads passing through farm lands but much higher frequencies of
causalities on roads passing through a mix of crop fields and forests (see
review in Erritzoe et al. 2003). This may be a
possible explanation of lowest number of road kills on Segment 5, which had
mainly crop fields and patches of open forests.
Conclusion
and Recommendations
The road
kills encountered in the present study shows that diverse wildlife exist
outside the protected areas, and they move between different habitats such
as agriculture fields, forests, and
forest edge for foraging, and other ecological requirements. Our study reports
that the vehicular traffic on SH 26 is taking a toll on the wildlife in the
area. Numerous kills of Nightjars and different species of owls, including two
individuals of the endangered Forest Owlet, is alarming as it indicates that
these species use the road frequently and are at high risk of getting into collisions with vehicles. Through this
paper we have provided information on type of species killed, the locations of
road kills and monthly patterns of WVC. Our findings could be used as a
baseline information to prevent further wildlife mortalities on SH 26.
Based on the frequency of road
kills, we have identified seven hot spots for the accidents on SH 26 (Figure
7). Installation of speed bumps and rumblers are
effective in controlling speeding vehicles. We suggest installation of speed rumblers at each hotspot.
For preventing mortalities of
nocturnal animals, we suggest removing shrubs from the roadside and planting
tall native trees on either side of the hotspots and all along the roadside on
SH 26. On hotspots 1, 2, & 3, the road level is uneven, which allows
accumulation of water in ditches. This can attract owls and other mammalian
predators for hunting of small prey. The
height of the road should be made even to prevent water accumulation.
Generalist species like Domestic
Cat, Jungle Cat, Jackals, Langurs, babblers, robins, rollers, and mynas have
got exposure to a variety of habitats and therefore are not wary of crossing the roads. Such species often
come on to the road to scavenge and become a victim of road hits (Medrano-Vizcaíno et al. 2022). The habitat around hotspots 1, 2, 3,
6, & 7, is mainly agricultural fields interspersed with patches of forests.
The owners of the crop fields should be requested to keep the road side free of
grains, and fruits that may be attracting animals for foraging. The highways
should be kept free of carcasses too as it attracts bird and mammalian
scavengers.
Animal crossing signages and
reflectors are helpful in alerting the driver to watch out for wildlife
crossing the roads. We have recently put up a few such signboards on SH 26
urging the drivers to maintain slow driving speed (Figure 8). The signboards
should be shifted to new locations every few months, because if the signboards
are at the same place, it will not invite the attention of regular drivers as
they get used to seeing it (Sullivan et al. 2004).
The proposed widening of SH 26
for making into a four-lane road will lead to an increase in traffic intensity,
vehicle speed and is expected to increase the wildlife death toll. This calls
for attention of such studies to be carried out on a wider scale across the
country to understand the impact of roads passing through forested areas.
Considering the rapid rate at
which roads are being constructed in the country, it is imperative and urgent
to carry out systematic and rigorous impact assessment on existing and proposed
roads. Further, it is important to institutionalise a
mechanism through which effective mitigation measures could be implemented
which will enable biodiversity conservation and infrastructure development in a
compatible manner.
Table 1. Description of habitat
and land use on different segments of SH 26.
Segment number |
Location name |
Terrain |
Road length (km) |
Habitat and land use |
1 |
Roshani to Awaliya |
Plain |
7.5 |
Agriculture with some patches
of teak forests and a few habitations |
2 |
Awaliya to Kalighodi |
Plain |
6 |
Teak forests interspersed with
agriculture |
3 |
Kalighodi to Bagda |
Hilly |
7.5 |
Teak mix forests |
4 |
Bagda to Jhinjari |
Plain |
9 |
Mainly agriculture with very
few patches of teak forests |
5 |
Awaliya to Harda |
Plain |
4 |
Agriculture with very few
patches of open forests |
Table 2. Percentage frequency,
activity pattern, and feeding guilds of mammals, birds, and herpetofauna road
kills on SH 26.
|
Taxa |
Scientific name |
Activity pattern |
Feeding guild |
No. of indivi-duals
(% of total) |
|
MAMMALS |
|
|
|
|
I |
Family Canidae |
|
|
|
|
|
1. Golden Jackal |
Canis aureus |
N |
C/I |
1 (7.69) |
II |
Family Cercopithicidae |
|
|
|
|
|
2. Central Indian Langur |
Semnopithecus entellus |
D |
S/G |
1 (7.69) |
III |
Family Felidae |
|
|
|
|
|
3. Domestic Cat |
Felis catus |
N |
C/I |
1 (7.69) |
|
4. Jungle Cat |
Felis chaus |
N |
C/I |
1 (7.69) |
IV |
Family Viverridae |
|
|
C/I |
|
|
5. Small Indian Civet |
Viverricula indica |
N |
C/I |
2 (15.38) |
V |
Family Leporidae |
|
|
|
|
|
6. Rufous-tailed Hare |
Lepus nigricolis |
N |
S/G |
1(7.69) |
VI |
Family Muridae |
|
|
|
|
|
Mus spp. |
Mus spp. |
N |
S/G |
2 (15.38) |
VII |
Family Sciuridae |
|
|
|
|
|
Indian Palm Squirrel |
Funambulus palmarum |
D |
S/G |
2 (15.38) |
|
Northern Palm Squirrel |
Funambulus pennantii |
D |
S/G |
2 (15.38) |
|
Total |
|
|
|
13 |
|
BIRDS |
|
|
|
|
I. |
Family Caprimulgidae |
|
|
|
|
|
1. Nightjar Species |
Caprimulgus spp. |
N |
I |
11 (25.58) |
II. |
Family Cisticolidae |
|
|
|
|
|
2. Grey-breasted Prinia |
Prinia hodgsonii |
D |
I |
1 (2.33) |
III |
Family Columbidae |
|
|
|
|
|
3. Laughing Dove |
Spilopelia senegalensis |
D |
S/G |
2(4.65) |
IV |
Family Coraciidae |
|
|
|
|
|
4. Indian Roller |
Coracias benghalensis |
D |
I |
3 (6.98) |
V |
Family Cuculidae |
|
|
|
|
|
5. Greater Coucal
|
Centropus sinensis |
D |
I |
6 (13.95) |
VI |
Family Estrildidae |
|
|
|
|
|
6. Indian Silverbill |
Euodice malabarica |
D |
S/G |
1(2.33) |
VII |
Family Leiothrichidae |
|
|
|
|
|
7. Jungle Babbler |
Argya striata |
D |
I |
1(2.33) |
VIII |
Family Motacillidae |
|
|
|
1(2.33) |
|
8. Pipit Species |
|
D |
I |
|
IX |
Family Paridae |
|
|
|
|
|
9. Great Tit |
Parus major |
D |
I |
2(4.65) |
X |
Family Strigidae |
|
|
|
|
|
10. Spotted Owlet |
Athene brama |
N |
C/I |
2 (4.65) |
|
11. Forest Owlet |
Athene (Heteroglaux)
blewitti |
D |
C/I |
2 (4.65) |
|
12. Jungle Owlet |
Glaucidium radiatum |
D |
C/I |
1(2.33) |
|
13. Mottled Wood-Owl |
Strix ocellata |
N |
C/I |
1(2.33) |
|
14. Rock Eagle-Owl |
Bubo bengalensis |
N |
C/I |
1(2.33) |
|
15. Indian Scops-Owl |
Otus bakkamoena |
N |
C/I |
2 (4.65) |
XI |
Family Tytonidae |
|
|
|
|
|
16. Barn Owl |
Tyto alba |
N |
C/I |
2(4.65) |
XII |
Family Sturnidae |
|
|
|
|
|
17. Common Myna |
Acridotheres tristis |
D |
I |
3 (6.98) |
|
18. Unidentified Dove Species |
|
S/G |
1(2.33) |
|
|
Total |
|
|
|
43 |
|
HERPETOFAUNA |
|
|
|
|
I |
Family Bufonidae |
||||
|
1. Common Indian Toad |
Duttaphrynus melanostictus |
N |
I |
2 (40.00) |
II |
Family Elapidae |
|
|
|
|
|
2. Common Krait |
Bungarus caeruleus |
N |
C |
1 (20.00) |
III |
Family Colubridae |
|
|
|
|
|
3. Bronzeback
Tree Snake |
Dendrelaphis tristi |
N |
C |
1 (20.00) |
|
4. Indian Ratsnake |
Ptyas mucosa |
N |
C |
1 (20.00) |
|
Total |
|
|
|
5 |
Feeding guild: C—Carnivore | G—Fruit/ Granivores I—Insectivore | S—Seed.
For
figures & images - - click here for complete PDF
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