In the North Bay, trouble spots include:
• The whole of Highway 101 between Petaluma and the Golden Gate Bridge, and particularly south of the Highway 580 junction, including several stretches where wooded hills rise on either side of the road;
• Highway 12 through the Sonoma Valley, which traverses a wildlife corridor; and
• Three segments of Highway 37 roughly along the shoreline of San Pablo Bay — at the mouth of the Petaluma River, near Highway 121 and Tolay Creek, and near Mare Island, west of the Napa River.
See California Roadkill Observation System.
An opossum, a coyote, a gray fox, a raccoon, a crow and several ground squirrels — all dead — were just a few of the sightings Marlene Radigue reported in recent weeks from a stretch of Highway 12 through the Sonoma Valley, near her home.
A steadfast witness to the deadly encounters between vehicles and wildlife along the roadway, the Glen Ellen woman has spent several years somberly documenting the results, then respectfully moving animal remains to the edge of the road so scavengers can take over without the risk of being killed themselves.It’s sobering work. But it offers hope of change, as well.
Radigue, a textile designer, is part of an effort through UC Davis to identify California highway “hotspots” — areas where deadly collisions between motorists and animals are statistically high — in order to raise awareness about safety risks to both animals and motorists, and guide planning and design decisions toward increasing wildlife crossing opportunities in the state’s complex highway system.
More than a thousand volunteer observers have contributed to the project since its inception in 2009, creating a growing database that’s the basis of an updated report on “wildlife-vehicle conflict zones” released by the UC Davis Road Ecology Center last week.
Read more at: Map reveals roadkill hot spots in Sonoma County | The Press Democrat