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Roads and Ecological Infrastructure

Concepts and Applications for Small Animals

edited by Kimberly M. Andrews, Priya Nanjappa, and Seth P. D. Riley

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A practical guide that explains how we can design roads that are compatible with populations of small wildlife.

Few of us think twice about driving on roads. Yet the very presence of roads and the act of driving on them can impact the ecological infrastructure that supports an animal's daily life. What chance does a turtle have of successfully laying its eggs when it needs to traverse a busy highway? Is it realistic to expect small mammals to breed when an interstate thoroughfare subdivides their population? These are the sorts of challenges faced by small, often slow-moving, animals...

A practical guide that explains how we can design roads that are compatible with populations of small wildlife.

Few of us think twice about driving on roads. Yet the very presence of roads and the act of driving on them can impact the ecological infrastructure that supports an animal's daily life. What chance does a turtle have of successfully laying its eggs when it needs to traverse a busy highway? Is it realistic to expect small mammals to breed when an interstate thoroughfare subdivides their population? These are the sorts of challenges faced by small, often slow-moving, animals, challenges that road engineers and ecologists are trying to address.

For countless small species, vehicles traveling at high speeds are nothing less than missiles shooting across migration pathways. For too many animals, the danger can lead to the loss of populations, in part because they simply are not programmed to react to traffic. Salamanders faced with a two-lane road between the forest and their aquatic breeding site, for example, will typically cross that road regardless of the congestion. The result can be hundreds of flattened animals in a single night.

Roads and Ecological Infrastructure is the first book to focus on reducing conflict between roads and small animals. Highlighting habitat connections and the challenges and solutions from both transportation and ecological perspectives, the volume covers various themes, including animal behavior related to roads and design approaches to mitigate the negative effects of roads on wildlife. The chapter authors—from transportation experts to university researchers—each promote a goal of realistic problem solving. Conceptual and practical, this book will influence the next decade or more of road design in ecologically sensitive areas and should prevent countless unnecessary wildlife fatalities.

Published in association with The Wildlife Society.

Reviews

Reviews

Road kills seriously affect some animal populations, and this book should be required reading for high school and college students, faculty, and general readers.

A primary goal of the editors is to broaden the reader’s view of road impacts on small animals by providing the ecological context within which the public infrastructure (roads, bridges, etc.) functions... The book is a call to action for researchers, engineers, landscape planners, and others involved with road ecology to collaborate... to reach common goals.

University researchers, government agencies involved in transportation issues, land managers, conservation biologists, and anyone concerned with the losses to herpetofauna and small mammals because of roads will find this volume to be an important and insightful resource.

Managers have largely ignored small wildlife species when mitigating the impacts of roads and traffic. However, when considering nature conservation, smaller wildlife species—especially amphibians and reptiles—seem to be particularly vulnerable. This book synthesizes the impacts of roads and traffic on small wildlife species and presents strong recommendations to address these impacts. Read them and make good things happen!

About

Book Details

Publication Date
Status
Available
Trim Size
7
x
10
Pages
304
ISBN
9781421416397
Illustration Description
62 halftones, 33 line drawings
Table of Contents

List of Contributors
Foreword
Acknowledgments

Introduction
Chapter 1. A History of Small Animal Road Ecology
Chapter 2. Natural History and Physiological Characteristics of Small Animals in Relation to

List of Contributors
Foreword
Acknowledgments

Introduction
Chapter 1. A History of Small Animal Road Ecology
Chapter 2. Natural History and Physiological Characteristics of Small Animals in Relation to Roads
Chapter 3. Direct Effects of Roads on Small Animal Populations
Chapter 4. Road Effects on Habitat Quality for Small Animals
Chapter 5. Engaging the Public in the Transportation Planning Process
Chapter 6. The Current Planning and Design Process
Chapter 7. Sources of Funding
Practical Example 1
Chapter 8. Planning and Designing Mitigation of Road Effects on Small Animals
Chapter 9. Mitigating Road Effects on Small Animals
Chapter 10. Modifying Structures on Existing Roads to Enhance Wildlife Passage
Chapter 11. Construction and Maintenance
Chapter 12. Monitoring Road Effects and Mitigation Measures and Applying Adaptive Management
Practical Example 2
Chapter 13. The Road Ahead
Index

Author Bios
Featured Contributor

Kimberly M. Andrews

Kimberly M. Andrews is a wildlife researcher and graduate faculty member at the University of Georgia and the research coordinator at the Jekyll Island Authority.
Featured Contributor

Priya Nanjappa

Priya Nanjappa is the amphibian and reptile coordinator at the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies and a national coordinator for Partners in Amphibian and Reptile Conservation.
Featured Contributor

Seth P. D. Riley, Ph.D.

Seth P. D. Riley is a wildlife ecologist for the U.S. National Park Service. He is the coeditor of Urban Carnivores: Ecology, Conflict, and Conservation.
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