Costa Rica’s Public Works and Transport Ministry (MOPT) has started placing crossing signs on the roads in a bid to reduce wildlife fatalities.

Initiated with the help of the environment ministry, the initiative aims at informing motorists to slow down for animals on the road, ticotimes.net reported.

The new signs without any text are displayed in yellow and diamond-shaped colours with the black silhouettes of a monkey, deer and coati crossing a street.

"All motorists are requested to slow down when they see the signs on the roads."

Environment vice-minister Patricia Madrigal Montero said that all motorists are requested to slow down when they see the signs on the roads.

A research conducted by the University of Costa Rica’s (UCR) Ecotourism School revealed that wildlife deaths are mainly caused by speeding motorists.

As part of the research, a group of UCR investigators travelled 650km for a complete year to count the number of wild animals that were killed on the roads.

It was found that anteaters, raccoons, ocelots, mice, foxes and vultures were among the animals affected by motorists.

A report by MOPT in 2014 noted that despite the installation of 33 wildlife crossings, including four hanging ropes for monkeys, squirrels and other arboreal species, and 29 tunnels on the southern Pacific region, animals are killed in the area by speeding motorists.

Official approvals for the wildlife crossing were secured last year.