Conservationists raise concern over rising roadkill in the Nilgiris

Wider roads cutting through forest patches and increased traffic are leading to a rise in roadkill in areas bordering Udhagamandalam town.

According to conservationists, the stretches where roadkill has become a major problem are along the Udhagamandalam-Kotagiri road and the Ooty-Gudalur road, with the stretch near Golf Links road witnessing a high number of wild animal deaths over the past few years.

“With the National Highway connecting Ooty and Gudalur – especially the stretch linking the Government Medical College and Hospital in Udhagamandalam – having been fixed with speedbreakers, most heavy vehicles prefer to use Golf Links road, which is heavily used by wildlife, including leopards, leopard cats, jungle cats, deer, Asiatic wild dogs, and other small animals. Over the past few years, many animals have been killed while crossing the stretch,” said N. Sadiq Ali, founder of the Wildlife and Nature Conservation Trust.

Besides the Golf Links Road, the road leading to Doddabetta from Udhagamandalam has also witnessed a high number of animal casualties.

In a recent study titled ‘The Cost of Crossing: An initial attempt to uncover wildlife vehicular mortality in Doddabetta, Nilgiris,’ researchers, while undertaking road transect surveys over a five-month period between February and June in 2025, documented roadkill involving 81 individual animals representing 19 different species.

While a majority of them involved Indian toads (20) and the Horsfield’s spiny lizard (40) – an endemic species – endangered species such as the variable ghat frog and the Nilgiri laughinghthrush were also found to have been victims of road accidents.

N. Moinudheen, one of the authors of the study, said that awareness creation among road users using these stretches was of paramount importance. “For instance, wildlife enthusiasts would probably be the only ones who know that species such as the Horsfield’s spiny lizard are found along the Doddabetta road in large numbers, or that the area is home to a wide array of endemic wildlife species. The region is also home to a large number of Nilgiri martens that are frequently seen. The Forest department, in association with highways officials, could look into creating awareness among road users about the need to adhere to speed limits along these stretches to prevent roadkill,” said Mr. Moinudheen.