Resources from the Transportation Library: Wildlife Management

By Kendra K. Levine
Reference and Outreach Librarian, Institute of Transportation Studies Library

FHWA Resources

Wildlife-Vehicle Collision Reduction Study: Best Practices Manual
M. P. Huijser, et al., FHWA-HEP-09-022, June 2008
Provides the results of a study mandated by SAFETEA-LU. Offers a deeper understanding of the causes of wildlife-vehicle collisions and solutions to this safety issue. Includes suggestions for types of fencing, design of overpasses and underpasses, and animal detection systems.
Wildlife Protection: Keeping It Simple
This comprehensive website provides many practical and simple solutions and examples of how agencies can minimize the effects of highways on wildlife.
Critter Crossings: Linking Habitats and Reducing Roadkill
FHWA-EP-004, 2000
Describes the impact of transportation on a number of different wildlife habitats, and provides information and methodology to minimize transportation’s impact on wildlife.
Noise Effect on Wildlife
A comprehensive study on the impact of noise pollution on many different habitats and wildlife. Includes conclusions and recommendations on methods to mitigate the impact of noise pollution from transportation.

Caltrans Resources

In California, the Caltrans Division of Environmental Analysis conducts research and provides resources on issues related to biological resources. Their two primary resources are:

Wildlife Crossings Guidance Manual (Free login required)
March 2009
This interactive website allows agencies, stakeholders, and interested groups to participate in a community concerned with wildlife crossing. Users can contribute information about their own practices or make suggestions.
California Essential Habitat Connectivity Project
February 2010
Commissioned in conjunction with the California Department of Fish and Game, the project aims to make transportation planning more efficient and to minimize potential wildlife-vehicle collisions. The report includes the statewide Essential Habitat Connectivity map, data from different areas of the map, and guidance for mitigation.

Wildlife Crossing Design

ARC: The International Wildlife Crossing Infrastructure Design Competition
This competition challenged interdisciplinary design groups to create next-generation wildlife crossing structures for roadways. The website includes thought-provoking entry designs from the finalists, detailed technical appendices, and links to additional references.
Handbook for Design and Evaluation of Wildlife Crossing Structures in North America A.P. Clevenger and M.P. Huijser, Western Transportation Institute, Montana State University, 2009 [PDF, 7.9 M]
Commissioned by FHWA, this handbook provides a detailed overview and technical details for the planning, design, and construction of wildlife crossing structures. Containing an extensive synthesis of the current literature, the handbook also offers practical advice and guidance for implementation and evaluation of wildlife crossing projects.

Articles and Reports

Evaluation of the Use and Effectiveness of Wildlife Crossings [PDF, 7.4 M]
J.A. Bissonette and P.C. Cramer, NCHRP Report no. 615, 2008
A comprehensive study of the state of the practice of wildlife crossings nationwide, with attention focused on safety, data modeling, the influence of roads on ecosystems, and possible restoration of wildlife crossings. It concludes with a decision guide to help practitioners respond to data from the field and take the appropriate actions to mitigate wildlife-vehicle collisions.
Advances in Wildlife Crossing Technologies
M. Gray, Public Roads, v.73, n. 2, September/October 2009, pp. 14-21
Provides an overview of animal detection systems, including the benefits and costs. Features a useful matrix to show the different characteristics and capabilities of the systems described in the article. It concludes with suggestions and a checklist for implementation of an animal detection program.
Best Practices for Preventing Wildlife–Vehicle Collisions [PDF, 1.9 M]
P.T. McGowen and M.P. Huijser, TR News, no. 262, May-June 2009, pp-14-15
Contains an overview of characteristics and threats for wildlife-vehicle collisions and identifies threatened and endangered species that are particularly vulnerable to road mortality. Best practices recommended include suggestions about methods to reduce speed, winter maintenance practices, and vegetation management.
Relating Vehicle-Wildlife Crashes to Road Reconstruction
R.K. Young and C.S. Vokruka, Transportation Research Board 87th Annual Meeting, 2008
This paper uses GIS tools to examine crash rates in Wyoming. The GIS data was used to study the effectiveness of seven reconstruction projects in the reduction of animal-vehicle collisions in the state, though design-speed was determined to have the only real impact on crash rates.
Developing an Asset Management Tool to Collect and Track Commitments on Environmental Mitigation Features
S. Cook, J. Bittner, and T. Adams, Transportation Research Record, no. 2160, 2010, pp. 21-28
Examines the state of wildlife mitigation projects from the Wisconsin DOT, and their need to track certain features through different projects around the state. This paper describes the development of a tracking tool to help coordinate projects statewide, as well as a survey of other states’ practices for environmental mitigation tracking.
Relationships between Lighting and Animal-Vehicle Collisions [PDF, 0.8 M]
J.M. Sullivan, UMTRI-2009-35, October 2009
This report examines the impact of roadway lighting and driver visibility on animal-vehicle collisions. It concludes with suggestions on ways to mitigate poor lighting, such as detection systems and posting speed limits.
UDOT Wildlife and Domestic Animal Accident Toolkit [PDF, 3.4 M]
Utah DOT, UT-08.07, April 2008
This toolkit contains data about the locations and characteristics of wildlife and domestic animal accident hotspots. There is also information for planners, project managers, and engineers, to help keep animals off Right-of-Ways and roadways.
Mitigating Wildlife Mortality and Habitat Fragmentation Due to Transportation Infrastructure [PDF, 240 K]
A.P. Clevenger, Western Transportation Institute, Montana State University, January 2004
An extension of the Banff Research and evaluation, this report describes methods used to monitor wildlife crossings, partnership and outreach efforts, and recommendations for implementation.

About The Institute of Transportation Studies Library

Employees of California public sector transportation agencies at the local, state, and regional levels, including federal agencies located in California, are eligible to request anything in the transportation library’s catalog for free. The library will even provide up to 50 pages of photocopies of articles from journals, trade magazines, or conference reports, or scan and e-mail the requested material.

We encourage public agency employees to contact the Library for reference services and loans. Specialized services are provided free to public agency employees with funding from the California Local Technical Assistance Program (LTAP). See library.its.berkeley.edu for details, or contact:

Kendra K. Levine
Reference and Outreach Librarian
Transportation Library
Institute of Transportation Studies
University of California, Berkeley
412 McLaughlin Hall
Berkeley, CA 94720-1720
ph. 510.642.3604
fax 510.642.9180
email itslib@berkeley.edu

All requests must include your name, job title, agency name, mailing address, and, if requesting material, the title and call number.

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