California Roadkill Observation System update

The title may make you smile or wince, but I think they are doing good things.

 Received in email:

Friends and Colleagues:

As spring leaps upon us, wildlife will begin moving around more and roadkill observers will have more work to do. The short update attached to this message briefly describes some of our progress and next steps. We are contributing to driver safety and wildlife conservation by looking for roadkill “hotspots” where mitigation could occur. We increased our database by 50% when we received some roadkill data from Caltrans and we are trying to get tens of thousands  more observations from Caltrans Districts that collect these data. We remain the largest such system in the US, but not the world (that spot is held by Sweden). We continue to share data with graduate students and others concerned about specific species, or specific geographies. We thank you for your thousands of observations and welcome your continued or renewed participation in CROS.

Fraser Shilling

Fraser Shilling, Ph.D.

Co-Director, Road Ecology Center

Information Center for the Environment

Department of Environmental Science and Policy

University of California, Davis 95616

From the glossy brochure:

CROS is a group of people and an online system for recording dead wildlife found on roads (http://wildlifecrossing.net/california). Since summer 2009, CROS observers have helped identify places on roads and highways where risk to drivers and animals may be greater from collisions. They have discovered a wide range of species affected by collisions with vehicles. They have also contributed to the largest wildlife observation system in the state. CROS developers and observers are volunteers who are interested in where wildlife occurs and gathering information important for conservation. The volunteer crowd includes professional and amateur scientists, as well as natural historians.