Research overview: road mortality of fishing cats in urban Sri Lanka

In and around Colombo, vehicle collisions are a frequently recorded cause of death for fishing cats moving between fragmented wetland patches across a dense road network. This overview synthesises roadkill and telemetry findings on where and why fishing cats cross roads, the canals and culverts they use, and the hotspots that emerge as wetlands are bisected by infrastructure. It examines mitigation including culvert-based crossings, signage and wetland-corridor protection, and the role of citizen reporting in mapping mortality. The synthesis frames roads as a leading direct threat layered atop habitat loss for a felid trying to survive within a growing capital.