Since the Oracle Road wildlife crossing were finished in March 2016, the Arizona Game and Fish Department has been monitoring the crossings for wildlife use and conducting regular roadkill surveys along this stretch of Oracle Road.
The most recent report from Arizona Game and Fish Department’s monitoring results can be found HERE.
BACKGROUND
Now that the Oracle Road wildlife crossings are finished, a 4-year monitoring program is underway to document all the wildlife using these crossings. Arizona Game and Fish Department (AGFD) is spearheading the program, with collaboration from the Coalition and our volunteer-driven Wildlife Camera Monitoring Program.
In April 2016, the AGFD installed 8 video cameras and 4 still cameras (all motion-activated) on the new Oracle Road wildlife bridge. They also installed 4 still cameras on the wildlife underpass. AGFD will also be conducting roadkill surveys, monitoring the movements of Sonoran Desert tortoises and mule deer in the area of the crossings, and providing recommendations for the adaptive management of the structures.
MONITORING RESULTS
According to the December 2020 monitoring report from AGFD:
Image data has been analyzed from project inception (April 8th, 2016) to October 29th, 2020. This represents over four and a half years of monitoring at the crossing structures, monitoring will continue at both structures to assess utilization trends over time for various species and complement deer movement data collected as part of Secretarial Order 3362 (see Supplemental Objective on Page 19 for more information). A total of 28 native vertebrate species have been documented at the crossing structures, 12 at the overpass, and 27 at the underpass. Of these, 20 have been documented crossing SR77, 11 at the overpass, and 19 at the underpass.
12655 wildlife crossings have been documented across both structures, with 6684 and 5971 at the overpass and underpass respectively. Mule deer, javelina, and coyote utilize the overpass most regularly with 5211, 776, and 576 documented crossings respectively. At the underpass javelina, coyote, and mule deer are again the most regularly documented species with 2483, 2029, and 1123 crossings respectively. Along with bobcat, these species account for over 98% of documented crossings at each structure. Other species of note observed crossing through the underpass include, a white-nosed coati in September 2017, and a white-tailed deer in January 2019.
Observed crossing accumulation trends at the overpass show that mule deer crossing rates have been increasing over the past 2 years, suggesting utilization by mule deer has not yet peaked (Figure 3). Javelina crossings have continued to be documented at an increased rate since July 2018 and are now more regularly observed than coyotes. Bobcat use continues to be documented at a low rate.
Road mortality surveys were completed in August 2018, 14 survey cycles have been completed in total, 7 each in 2017 and 2018 respectively. Each year four survey cycles were completed during the first four weeks of May; the remaining three survey cycles were completed during the first three weeks of August. All collected road mortality data has been compiled. 1,849 observations were recorded over the course of the project, of these 1,799 related to vertebrate mortalities, representing at least 80 species. Merriam’s kangaroo rat, couch’s spadefoot, and regal horned lizard were the most commonly recorded species with 257, 187, and 143 records respectively. Notable records include; Sonoran desert tortoise, gila monster, bobcat, javelina, black-necked gartersnake, checkered gartersnake, barn owl, and kit fox.
Installed wildlife fencing is designed to exclude all but wildlife except for birds and climbing rodents. Wildlife fencing currently exists on BOTH sides of Oracle Road between mileposts 84 and 86, but only on the EAST side of the road between mileposts 82 and 84, which is likely why we are seeing a roadkill hotspot appearing there. We are working with our partners and nearby homeowners to close these gaps in the wildlife fence.
AGFD’s complete 4-year monitoring plan can be found here. If you are interested in more data, maps, tables, and photos of wildlife using the Oracle Road wildlife crossings, please check out the latest monitoring report HERE. Also, scroll to the second half of this AGFD PowerPoint Presentation to see even more data.
Articles in the News & Updates section of our website with more information about monitoring results from the Oracle Road wildlife crossings can be found below:
December 2020 monitoring data from the Oracle Road wildlife crossings – December 21, 2020
April 2020 monitoring data from the Oracle Road wildlife crossings – April 22, 2020
Oracle Road wildlife crossings featured on FOX10 Drone Zone segment – December 17, 2019
The latest and greatest results from the Oracle Road wildlife crossings – July 19, 2019
New interactive case study about the Oracle Road wildlife crossings – December 7, 2018
New Game and Fish monitoring report documents over 4,400 animals using Oracle Road wildlife crossings in first 2 years – October 4, 2018
In the News: Oracle Road wildlife crossing results make a splash! – March 16, 2017
The first year of results are in! – March 13, 2017
New video shows deer and other animals crossing Oracle Road wildlife bridge – April 19, 2016
Video footage of animals using the wildlife bridge. All video footage and still photos courtesy Arizona Game and Fish Department.
Still photos of wildlife using both the wildlife bridge and wildlife underpass (click on arrows below each photo to scroll through slideshow)
A deer uses the Oracle Road wildlife bridge to cross Oracle Road safely from east to west in May 2016.
A mule deer exits the west entrance of the Oracle Road wildlife underpass in April 2016.
WILDLIFE CAMERA MONITORING PROJECT
The Coalition’s own wildlife camera monitoring project will supplement these studies, by revealing the number and type of species that are moving in the area that could potentially use the wildlife crossings. For instance, our cameras captured one photograph of a white-nose coati approaching the underpass from the east, but AGFD’s cameras did not record it using the underpass. This information is useful to help biologists determine if any changes or modifications should be made to improve the effectiveness of the structures for certain species.
Learn more about our camera monitoring project, and see the photos, HERE.
You can also watch a presentation given in March 2021 to learn about the latest results from the Oracle Road wildlife crossings (pdf version of presentation):
HELP US GATHER MORE DATA!
We need your eyes, too. Please report wildlife sightings on Oracle Road (alive or dead), and in the surrounding area in Rancho Vistoso, Sun City, and other nearby neighborhoods, bike paths, and trails. Share what you see on: http://www.inaturalist.org/projects/csdp-safe-passages