GPS To Track Wildlife Patterns

Tuesday, October 31, 2006 11:47 AM

ICBC has purchased ten special GPS units for use in EXCEL Transportation trucks. The units have three buttons, one is for "deer", one "moose", one "dead".

When a driver spots an animal, they are to hit the proper button, and that will record the spot, its sort of like a "man overboard" setting. Researchers at the University of Northern B.C. will then download all the information and put together a pretty good picture of wildlife travel patterns and peaks.

This new tool is the latest in the research aimed at reducing collisions with wildlife.

The information gathered through the use of the GPS system will provide accurate data on where animals are being spotted, or have been hit. The new information will not only tell researchers where animals are likely to be during different seasons, but where they are most likely to be during different times of the day.

Nearly 30% of all crashes in Northern B.C. during October, involve wildlife. Annually, there are close to 10 thousand animal related collisions, representing $23 million in claims. Stats show the collisions are responsible for an average of 316 injuries and four fatalities every year.

Prince George area truckers have been using the special units since July, and will continue to gather information until the summer of 2007.

Researchers say once they can accurately map locations for animal sitings, they can develop plans on how to avoid collisions.

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Posted on Tuesday, October 31, 2006 11:47 AM in News by 250 News

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Comments

Posted by: owl on October 31 2006 1:01 PM

So we can expect that some of those yellow road signs with pictures of wildlife on it will be relocated, removed or added to?

Posted by: Chadermando on November 1 2006 12:14 AM

This sounds like an excellent project. Problem is it might take 3-5 years to become accurate. Excell is a great company to do this with because they travel the same routes on a consistant schedule usually 45 minutes apart.

I advocate putting road reflective triangles in the ditch at every location where an animal has been hit with one color, and every place where there is an animal trail with another color. IMO the awareness for all the road public would help a lot.

Posted by: acrider54 on November 1 2006 6:18 AM

Truckers are having enough problem keeping on their own side of the road and the truck out of the ditch as it is. Give them something else to do to keep their mind off of the road and we'll all be in big trouble.

Posted by: owl on November 1 2006 8:37 AM

I am more interested in the other end of this study. It says that the UNBC researchers will be able to put together travel patterns. How will the data be used? Will ten moose sightings within a few kilometers be one moose or 10 or 3? I can see that it will identify which stretches of the highway are the busiest, for whatever reason.

In addition, as habitat changes over the years as a result of logging and natural events, I assume travel patterns and frequency of road sighting will change as well. So, this will provide a slice in time picture which may only be valid for a few years.

Let us assume that they can establish travel patterns, or at the least identify the busy areas. What will we do? Set up caution signs? Or do as they did along parts of the Coquihalla and set up wildlife exclusion fencing along with bridges and/or underpasses.

An interesting exercise, but I would like to be able to say as Paul Harvey did "and now you know the rest of the story".

For those who are into extra-curricular reading, you may wish to click onto the link about wildlife exclusion fencing, the cost, as well as the success rate for decreasing collisions between vehicles and animals.

http://www.th.gov.bc.ca/publications/eng_publications/environment/references/Wildlife_Fencing_Program.pdf