Daylight saving time can decrease the frequency of wildlife-vehicle collisions
Author(s)
Ellis, William A
FitzGibbon, Sean I
Barth, Benjamin J
Niehaus, Amanda C
David, Gwendolyn K
Taylor, Brendan D
Matsushige, Helena
Melzer, Alistair
Bercovitch, Fred B
Carrick, Frank
Jones, Darryl N
Dexter, Cathryn
Gillett, Amber
Predavec, Martin
Lunney, Dan
Wilson, Robbie S
Griffith University Author(s)
Year published
2016
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
Daylight saving time (DST) could reduce collisions with wildlife by changing the timing of commuter traffic relative to the behaviour of nocturnal animals. To test this idea, we tracked wild koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus) in southeast Queensland, where koalas have declined by 80% in the last 20 years, and compared their movements with traffic patterns along roads where they are often killed. Using a simple model, we found that DST could decrease collisions with koalas by 8% on weekdays and 11% at weekends, simply by shifting the timing of traffic relative to darkness. Wildlife conservation and road safety should become part ...
View more >Daylight saving time (DST) could reduce collisions with wildlife by changing the timing of commuter traffic relative to the behaviour of nocturnal animals. To test this idea, we tracked wild koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus) in southeast Queensland, where koalas have declined by 80% in the last 20 years, and compared their movements with traffic patterns along roads where they are often killed. Using a simple model, we found that DST could decrease collisions with koalas by 8% on weekdays and 11% at weekends, simply by shifting the timing of traffic relative to darkness. Wildlife conservation and road safety should become part of the debate on DST.
View less >
View more >Daylight saving time (DST) could reduce collisions with wildlife by changing the timing of commuter traffic relative to the behaviour of nocturnal animals. To test this idea, we tracked wild koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus) in southeast Queensland, where koalas have declined by 80% in the last 20 years, and compared their movements with traffic patterns along roads where they are often killed. Using a simple model, we found that DST could decrease collisions with koalas by 8% on weekdays and 11% at weekends, simply by shifting the timing of traffic relative to darkness. Wildlife conservation and road safety should become part of the debate on DST.
View less >
Journal Title
Biology letters
Volume
12
Subject
Landscape ecology
Biological sciences