Dupty Ram and Naveen Tholia
Abstract
The present study was conducted in urban and rural areas of Mahendrgarh district, Haryana to analyze roadkill mortality in birds from November 2023 to March 2026. A total of 549 individuals belonging to 36 species were recorded as having died due to road vehicle collisions in the urban and rural areas of Mahendragarh district. These 36 species belonged to 17 families and eight orders. According to the IUCN conservation status, 35 species belong to the least-concern category and one species belongs to endangered category. Among these eight orders, the maximum number of road-killed individuals belonged to the order Passeriformes (323) followed by Columbiformes (123), Strigiformes (24) and Coraciiformes (24). Furthermore, 22 individuals of road kill were found belonging to two species of the Galliformes order, namely Indian Peafowl and Grey Francolin. Twelve individuals in each order, Charariiformes and Accipitriformes, were also observed to die due to road vehicle collisions in urban and rural areas. A higher incidence of road-kill mortality of birds was observed in urban areas, with 355 individuals belonging to 33 species. In rural areas, only 194 road-killed individuals belonging to 30 species were recorded. This study suggests that an increase in vehicle traffic within urban areas significantly contributes to an increased rate of bird deaths from collisions with vehicles compared to rural regions. Additionally, urban environments can lead to habitat fragmentation, forcing birds to traverse roads more often in search of food, thereby increasing their chances of being hit by vehicles. Conversely, rural areas typically experience lower traffic levels and may offer more intact natural habitats, resulting in a reduced risk of bird mortality from vehicle collisions.