Roadkill Reporting App Successful In Utah

A year old app has provided the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources and the Utah Department of Transportation some important information about wildlife migration here in Utah.

The Utah Roadkill Reporter app was released last December to allow people to easily report the location and description of any dead animals they see on or near roads, so those animals can be removed more quickly from highways and freeways. The data also provides important wildlife migration information for biologists.

During the first year of the app’s release, a total of 3,843 animals were reported with it. Roughly 98% of the reported animals killed by vehicles were mule deer — a total of 3,611 deer. 

However, it’s estimated that only about half of deer-vehicle collisions are reported, and DWR biologists estimate that around 10,000 deer are actually hit and killed by vehicles in Utah annually. 

Elk was the second highest reported species hit and killed by vehicle with 157 reports. Racoons, pronghorn and even a black-billed magpie were among the other species reported to the state agencies through the Utah Roadkill Reporter app.

When someone submits a roadkill report through the app, along with including the species of animal and a GPS location, they may also upload a photo of the animal. However, you should not use the app while driving or get out of your vehicle along a busy highway. 

Data collected through the app will allow agencies to identify wildlife – vehicle collision hotspots allowing for the planning of projects to reduce the amount of wildlife – vehicle collisions. Things like wildlife fencing, underpasses, overpasses, and warning signs will be made possible by the collection of this data. 

You can get more information on the Utah Roadkill Reporter app by clicking here. The app is available for free from the App Store for I-Phone users and from Google Play for android devices.