Biodiversity collision blackspots in Poland: Separation causality from stochasticity in roadkills of butterflies

摘要: Abstract Collisions with cars are an important mortality factor for many wild animals. Measures to mitigate road costly so should be implemented using cost-effective measures in locations where the is consistently highest and non-random different species. It thus identify what features causes these biodiversity collision blackspots. Almost all of data literature on collisions refer vertebrates little known about invertebrates. We used butterfly roadkills three large landscape plots Poland sites rate seems routinely high. Biodiversity blackspots were identified from occurrence successive years spatial hierarchical clustering. comprised just 4% total length, but included 49% road-killed butterflies. Habitats within 500 m each blackspot was compared random non-blackspot generalized linear mixed models. The linked high traffic volume, only when cover grassland a verges had low plant species richness. Similarly, occurred probability volume especially if verge mowing frequency also These higher richness abundance butterflies surrounding than sites. analysis sections Moreover, indication rich areas conservation concern that intersected by roads. Thus, practitioners may direct mitigation measures, such as less frequent speed limit, cost-efficient manner spatially-limited locations.