Estimating annual vertebrate mortality on roads at Saguaro National Park, Arizona
Gerow K, Kline N, Swann D, Pokorny M. 2010. Estimating annual vertebrate mortality on roads at Saguaro National Park, Arizona. Human–Wildlife Interactions. 4(2):283-292
Roadkill is the greatest anthropogenic source of direct mortality for vertebrate wildlife in many parks and preserves in the United States. Many species are negatively impacted, even to the point of extirpation. Roadways at Saguaro National Park experience ever increasing use as the population in the nearby urban area of Tucson, AZ and the number of Park visitors increase. The average annual number of roadkill in the Park were estimated by taxonomic class, district, and season by applying independent data sets of roadkill surveys, persistence and detectability with a standard estimator developed to estimate avian mortality caused by wind turbines. Results of the study can contribute to approaches for future road management in national parks.
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Gerow, Ken; Kline, Natasha; Swann, Don; Pokorny, Martin
- Units
- SAGU
- Keywords
- human–wildlife conflicts, national parks, road effects, road management, roadkill, Saguaro National Park, vertebrate mortality, wildlife management, wildlife mortality, wildlife overpasses, wildlife protection, wildlife underpasses, wildlife–vehicle mortality