• Speed thrills but kills: Major highway i

    From ScienceDaily@1:317/3 to All on Tue Apr 26 22:30:44 2022
    Speed thrills but kills: Major highway in India of particular concern to reptiles and amphibians

    Date:
    April 26, 2022
    Source:
    Pensoft Publishers
    Summary:
    The National Highway 715, which passes through the Kaziranga
    National Park in Northeast India, is notorious for its
    roadkill. With protected habitats on both sides of the road,
    many animals cross it on a daily basis to feed and breed.



    FULL STORY ==========================================================================
    "Is it the road that crosses the habitat, or does the habitat cross
    the road?" ask scientists at Gauhati University (Assam, India) before
    agreeing that the wrong road at the wrong place is bound to cause various perils for the local wildlife, habitats and ecosystems. Furthermore,
    some of those effects may take longer than others to identify and confirm.


    ==========================================================================
    This is how the research team of doctoral research fellow Somoyita Sur,
    Dr Prasanta Kumar Saikia and Dr Malabika Kakati Saikia decided to study roadkill along a 64-kilometre-long stretch of one of the major highways
    in India: the National Highway 715.

    What makes the location a particularly intriguing choice is that it
    is where the highway passess between the Kaziranga National Park, a
    UNESCO World Heritage site in Assam and the North Karbi Anglong Wildlife Sanctuary, thus tempting animals to move to and from the floodplains of Kaziranga and the hilly terrain of the Sanctuary to escape the annual
    floods or -- on a daily basis - - in search for food and mating partners.

    In the beginning, they looked into various groups, including mammals,
    birds, reptiles, and amphibians, before realising that the death toll
    amongst frogs, toads, snakes and lizards was indeed tremendous, yet
    overlooked. Their findings were recently published in the peer-reviewed scholarly journal Nature Conservation.

    "To our surprise, the death toll within that 64-kilometre stretch of
    the highway was indeed dramatic. We estimated that it has been over
    6000 animals that have fallen under the wheels of motor vehicles within
    a single year. Prior to our study, similar research had focused on big charismatic species like the tiger, elephant and rhino, so when we took
    into account also the smaller animals: frogs, toads, snakes and lizards,
    the count went through the roof.

    Thus, we decided to make smaller species the focus of our work,"
    comments Sur.

    In conclusion, the scientists agree that roads and highways cannot be
    abandoned or prevented from construction and expansion, as they are
    crucial in connecting people and transporting goods and necessities.

    "Yet, we can definitely put some effort into designing and constructing
    them in a scientifically sound, eco-friendly and sustainable manner, so
    that they don't become the bane for our ecosystems," the team concludes.


    ========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by Pensoft_Publishers. Note: Content
    may be edited for style and length.


    ========================================================================== Journal Reference:
    1. Somoyita Sur, Prasanta Kumar Saikia, Malabika Kakati Saikia. Speed
    thrills but kills: A case study on seasonal variation in roadkill
    mortality on National highway 715 (new) in Kaziranga-Karbi Anglong
    Landscape, Assam, India. Nature Conservation, 2022; 47: 87 DOI:
    10.3897/ natureconservation.47.73036 ==========================================================================

    Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2022/04/220426101715.htm

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