AnimalAlert

Bane NOR has been involved in the project since 2020 and has funded the earlier research together with the Norwegian Railway Directorate. This year, the research is funded by Bane NOR and Norske Tog, and the main activity involves installing a speaker system on selected trains and collecting data.

The project’s impact goal is to establish a scientific foundation for developing an innovative and flexible wildlife warning system that influences animals to move away from railway tracks when trains pass—without restricting their movement in the broader landscape. The long-term expected effects include:

• Economic savings
• Improved animal welfare
• Fewer delays and reduced use of resources for tracking, handling injured and dead animals
• Contributing to technological development related to wildlife collisions

The results of the experiments will verify which sounds are most suitable to use from the train, for which animals, and in which habitats. Other expected outcomes of the project include:

• Identifying the most effective sounds to generally deter animals from railway tracks
• Determining which sounds are most effective for specific animal species
• Developing and testing technical equipment that can be mounted on trains and used for this purpose
• Testing how such a technical system performs in Scandinavian climate and varied topography
• Improving knowledge about preventive measures against wildlife collisions

Team

	Andreas Seiler Researcher, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
	Mattias Olsson Researcher, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
	Aina Winsvold Researcher, Ruralis – Institutt for rural- og regionalforskning
	Svein Morten Eilertsen Researcher, NIBIO Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research
	Robin Støckert Researcher, Norges teknisk-naturvitenskapelige universitet (NTNU)
	Sandra Kvelland Research assistent, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences

Publications

Peer-reviewed

• Olsson, M., & Seiler, A. (2024). Using a wildlife warning system to avert ungulates from a level level-crossing prior train arrival (Interim Report TRV 2022/32722). Trafikverket Diarienummer TRV 2022/32722.
• Börs, J., Olsson, M., & Seiler, A. (2023). Studier av skrämselsystem för ren – beteenderespons hos ren till olika ljudsignaler (Rapport 2023:162). Trafikverket. https://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:trafikverket:diva-12307
• Seiler, A., Winsvold, A., Olsson, M., Eilertsen, S. M., & Berndt, C. (2022). Test av nya tekniska åtgärder för att minska antalet viltpåkörningar på järnväg (INTERREG Sverige-Norge Slutrapport). SLU. https://doi.org/10.54612/a.7pbjcv25mc
• Bhardwaj, M., Lodnert, D., Olsson, M., Winsvold, A., Eilertsen, S. M., Kjellander, P., & Seiler, A. (2022). Inducing fear using acoustic stimuli-A behavioral experiment on moose (Alces alces) in Sweden. Ecol Evol, 12(11), e9492. https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.9492
• Bhardwaj, M., Olsson, M., Hakansson, E., Soderstrom, P., & Seiler, A. (2022). Ungulates and trains – Factors influencing flight responses and detectability. J Environ Manage, 313, 114992. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2022.114992
• Seiler, A. Olsson, M., Bhardwaj, M., Håkansson, E., Söderström, P. 2022. Djur på spår – videoanalys av interaktioner mellan djur och tåg. Slutrapport. Trafikverket Publ. 2022:036. http://trafikverket.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:1660387/FULLTEXT01.pdf
• Eilertsen, S.M., Winsvold, A., Almås, P & Næstad, F. 2021. Utprøving av skremmelyder mot hjortevilt ved fôringsplass, med langsiktig mål om å redusere omfanget av viltpåkjørsler langs jernbane. NIBIO rapport 182(7). 43 sider. https://nibio.brage.unit.no/nibio-xmlui/handle/11250/2830746
• Seiler A., Olsson M. (2017). Wildlife Deterrent Methods for Railways – An Experimental Study. In: Borda-de-Água L., Barrientos R., Beja P., Pereira H. (eds) Railway Ecology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-57496-7_17
• Olsson & Seiler 2015. Förestudie – pilot study with background to and initial plans for the study on wildlife safer railroads:
• Seiler, A., Olsson, M., Helldin, J. O. and Norin, H. (2011). Klövviltolyckor på järnväg – kunskapsläge, problemanalys och åtgärdsförslag., Trafikverket Publikation 2011:058. (only in Swedish with English summary): Ungulate-train collisions in Sweden – review, GIS-analyses and train driver experiences. https://trafikverket.diva-portal.org/smash/record.jsf?pid=diva2%3A1364568

Student theses

• Dennis Ondari Akama (in progress) – Non-invasive methods to reduce animal -train collisions in Scandinavia. – Master thesis at Embu University, Kenya and SLU, Sweden. Supervisors: Andreas Seiler (SLU), Justin Nyaga and Hannah Karuri (Embu).
• Carolin Berndt 2021 – Fallow deer in fields: Behavioural Responses of Ungulates to sounds systems – can simulated risk influence behaviour? – Master thesis at Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Dept. of Forest ecology, Umeå, Sweden. Supervisors: Yoris Cromsigt, Tim Hofmeester, Anna Widén.
• Denice Lodnert 2021 Evaluating the behavioural response of moose (Alces alces) to acoustic stimuli. – Master thesis at Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Dept. of Ecology. Uppsala, Sweden. Supervisors: Manisha Bhardwaj, Andreas Seiler at SLU, and Mattias Olsson at Enviroplanning AB
• Petter Almås 2021. Use of sound stimuli to elicit a change in moose (Alces alces) and red deer (Cervus elaphus) behaviour. – Master thesis at NBMU, Norway. Supervisors: Ronny Steen at NMBU and Karen Marie Mathisen at Inland Norway University
• Elina Bertne 2021. Should I stay or should I go – An experimental study on reactivity and habituation to acoustic stimuli in free-ranging ungulates. – Master thesis at Dept. of Ecology. Uppsala, Sweden. Supervisors: Andreas Seiler, Manisha Bhardwaj, Petter Kjellander.
• Sofia Willebrand 2017 Identifying hotspots of wildlife collisions on the Swedish railroad. Master thesis at Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Dept. of Ecology, Uppsala, Sweden. Supervisor: Andreas Seiler.

Media