Abstract
Animal–vehicle collisions (AVCs) cause animal death, human injury, and vehicle damage. Uncovering the general patterns and related ecological processes of AVCs is useful for developing mitigation strategies. We examined some previous patterns about AVCs from records in Alabama during 2001 to 2011. The results confirm that: (1) there was a seasonal pattern, with >50% of AVCs occurring in winter; (2) AVCs occurred most frequently at dawn and dusk in the diurnal pattern; and (3) most AVCs occurred on county highways. However, interstate and federal highways had higher numbers of AVCs per km of road. Counties within metropolitan areas had more AVCs. We analyzed 1,000 AVC cases selected at random from the all reported cases and found that 74% of AVCs had forested landscapes on both sides the road. At the county level, AVCs occurred more frequently in areas with greater human population density and less frequently in areas with few roads. The implications for mitigating human–wildlife conflict are provided based on a system view of vehicles, roads, and animals.
Recommended Citation
Chen, Xiongwen and Wu, Shuhong
(2014)
"Examining Patterns of Animal–Vehicle Collisions in Alabama, USA,"
Human–Wildlife Interactions: Vol. 8:
Iss.
2, Article 9.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.26077/p18k-1089
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/hwi/vol8/iss2/9
