Wildlife Road Mortality Hotspot Mapping

Systematic mapping of wildlife road mortality hotspots enables targeted mitigation that maximises welfare and conservation benefit. Citizen science and data-driven approaches are transforming our ability to act.

Key Facts

Road casualty mapping projects including Project Splatter in the UK have collected over 100,000 records of road-killed wildlife, identifying statistically significant hotspots for key species
Badger road mortality is concentrated at a small number of crossing points where foraging routes cross roads; targeted fencing and underpasses at these locations reduce mortality by over 90%
Hedgehog road mortality hotspots correlate with road types and land use patterns that can be predicted from mapping data, enabling proactive mitigation
GPS tracking of individual animals combined with mortality mapping identifies the habitat connections that make certain road sections disproportionately deadly
Low-cost interventions including temporary fencing during breeding seasons and wildlife warning signs are most effective when targeted using hotspot data rather than placed randomly

Welfare Considerations

Wildlife road mortality hotspot mapping converts diffuse, invisible welfare harm into actionable geographic information. Individual road deaths are scattered and seem random until data reveals the underlying patterns — the badger sett whose foraging route crosses the same 50-metre road section every night, the hedgehog population that must cross a trunk road to access their winter hibernation habitat. Targeted mitigation at identified hotspots is both more effective and more cost-efficient than random provision of crossing structures. Citizen science road casualty recording is one of the most direct ways that members of the public can contribute to wildlife welfare improvement: each record adds to the dataset that eventually triggers mitigation. The welfare impact of systematic hotspot mapping and targeted response is substantial relative to the cost.

What You Can Do

Record wildlife road casualties using citizen science apps like Project Splatter or iRecord to contribute to hotspot mapping databases
Share road casualty data with local transport authorities and wildlife organisations to trigger investigation of persistent hotspots
Advocate for transport planning to require wildlife road casualty monitoring as part of infrastructure impact assessment
Support local wildlife trusts in campaigning for underpasses and fencing at identified hotspots on local road networks
Reduce your own driving speed at night in rural areas where wildlife movement is highest to reduce your contribution to road mortality