Bandipur (Karnataka): Wild animals trying to cross the road or carcasses of those killed while attempting it, are a common sight for travelers on a 12.5 km stretch within Bandipur National Park in Karnataka, along the Mysore to Ooty National Highway 67. This highway, about 5.5 metres wide, is one of many metal led roads that dissect and fragment the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve of which Bandipur NP is a part. With no specified speed limits, the average speeds of traffic here is over 80 km/hr. This poses a grave threat to natural animal movement within the forest and incidents of injury and mortality of wild animals due to road accidents is high. Now, there is cause for more concern and conservationists are worried about a proposed up gradation of this road.
Already the numbers of wild animals killed by speeding vehicles along this stretch is alarming. A study on road kills along this stretch, member –of IFAW-WTI’s Emergency Relief Network (ERN) and founder, Wildlife Conservation Foundation had revealed that “at least three large animals (of the size of a deer or bigger) are killed monthly”. Tigers, Asian elephants, leopards, wild dog, spotted deer, sambar deer are killed. Snakes and even birds of prey have been killed in road accidents along this stretch.
Although wary of human presence, wild animals of Bandipur NP cannot avoid this road as they have no choice; it cuts through the natural home range of almost every species found in this habitat. Also, animals are attracted to the road by food offered or dropped by travelers. Predators and scavengers, attracted by road kills of their prey, are also vulnerable to accidents.
“Spotted deer is particularly vulnerable,” “They migrate daily in the East-West direction homing in for the night in Bandipur (forest head quarter), where presence of humans offers them protection from predators. At day break they cross the road and return to the wilderness. This daily movement makes them vulnerable to road accidents.
Broadly, straight stretches, animal crossings and areas with high road kill frequency were targeted for these speed check measures.”
With the succession of this project Traffic is banned from 9 pm to 6 am.
