Almost all collisions with animals on Australian roads are with kangaroos. But now Volkswagen is working on turning its iconic badge into an audio warning that will protect both kangaroos and drivers. And they think that the technology, which now is moving into Stage Four trials involving kangaroos in the wild, may eventually have much wider applicability.

An estimated 10 million native mammals, reptiles, birds and other species are killed each year, experts say. Human deaths and injuries from these collisions also are rising, with motorcyclists at greatest risk.

“Roadkill is a problem all around the world,” says Dr. Helen Bender of the University of Melbourne, whose research was used extensively in the project. “What’s interesting about deer relative to kangaroos is that they’re very similar in body size, head size, and ear size. What we know from science is that the ear shape in the head shape tells us that they probably have similar hearing ranges. So, whatever we learn has transferability to the deer as well.”

The RooBadge, which fits over a Volkswagen’s front badge and emits a warning signal to kangaroo species, was developed over three years by Volkswagen Australia and the DDB Group in consultation with the University of Melbourne and WIRES.