Prevalence and Hot Spot Areas of Roadkills and Impact of Vehicle Traffic Along Public Roads Inside Wildlife Protected Areas
Research Gap & Motivation
There is a significant research gap regarding the prevalence, spatial hotspots, and drivers of wildlife roadkill along key public and internal park roads, as well as how vehicle traffic intensity and road characteristics influence these patterns.
Critical Context
Existing data for Uganda are limited to small stretches and specific taxa, yet new oil and gas, tourism, and other socioeconomic development projects are extending roads through critical habitats, potentially increasing wildlife mortality risk for a wide range of vertebrates and invertebrates and threatening both biodiversity and human safety.
Research Objectives
Overall Objective
To determine the extent of roadkill, hotspot areas and the impact of vehicle traffic on wildlife along selected roads inside the three national parks, to inform science-based management.
Specific Objectives
Quantify wildlife roadkill prevalence in each park
Identify roadkill hotspots
Measure vehicle traffic levels along the study roads
Assess factors associated with roadkill, including road type, traffic, environmental and spatial attributes
Study Design & Implementation
The study is a longitudinal survey being implemented in two phases, covering different seasonal and tourism patterns to capture comprehensive data on wildlife-vehicle interactions.
Study Sites & Transects
In each park, two road transects (one paved, one unpaved) were selected based on known or suspected roadkill, traffic volume and accessibility:
🦁 Murchison Falls National Park
🐘 Queen Elizabeth National Park
🦍 Kibale National Park
Data Collection Methods
Field teams drive or ride each transect in morning and evening, recording all carcasses and incident reports using standard forms and mobile tools (e.g. EarthRanger).
📊 Survey Protocol
Morning (7-9 am) and evening (4-6 pm) transect surveys with systematic carcass recording
🗺️ Spatial Data
GPS coordinates, road characteristics, distance to boundary, signage presence
🦎 Species Data
Species identity, age, body condition, taxonomic classification
🚗 Traffic Monitoring
Vehicle type, time of day, traffic volume patterns
🌍 Environmental Variables
Land cover, wildlife crossing points, habitat characteristics
👥 Community Input
Incident reports from community members, tour operators and park staff
Preliminary Findings (Phase 1: 40-Day Wet Season)
Key Observations from Phase 1
- Murchison Falls NP: Accounted for the majority (about 580) of roadkills, especially along the busy paved Kichumbanyobo-Tangi road, while the unpaved Paraa-Wangkwar road recorded only 4 kills
- Queen Elizabeth NP: Had lower totals overall, though the Kikorongo-Kyambura section still showed a notable concentration of 96 kills, indicating a local hotspot
- Kibale NP: Contributed lower numbers to the overall total
- Peak Detection Time: Most incidents were detected in the morning (7-9 am), suggesting peaks in nocturnal/crepuscular animal movement overlapping with early traffic and possibly reduced visibility or driver behaviour
- Evening Surveys: Recorded fewer kills (4-6 pm time slot)
- Road Type Effect: Paved roads showed dramatically higher mortality rates compared to unpaved tracks
Taxonomic Distribution of Roadkills
- Class Insecta Dominated in MFNP & Kibale
- Birds (Aves) High proportion in QENP
- Mammals Consistently represented
- Reptiles Across all parks
- Amphibians Across all parks
This broad taxonomic representation highlights the extensive ecological impacts of road mortality across vertebrate and invertebrate classes.