![]() ![]() Maintaining habitat connectivity for wildlifeĪfter 14 years of on-the-ground monitoring and research before, during, and after construction of wildlife crossing structures, we can definitively state that US 93 North crossing measures have reduced wildlife-vehicle collisions and maintained or improved habitat connectivity for deer and black bear.For the coalition of engineers, scientists, and government officials involved in the renovation of US 93 North, success was centered around two things: If we want to know whether wildlife-crossing structures work, it’s important to define what success looks like. They increase wildlife connectivity, save taxpayer dollars, and reduce deaths and injuries to both humans and wildlife. Wildlife fences, in combination with wildlife crossing structures, are an effective solution to these problems. This reduces the likelihood that a species disappears from a region and minimizes the potential for inbreeding. Connectivity allows wildlife to repopulate areas or populate new habitat.Animals need to move freely between different types of habitat to find food and water, establish territory, reproduce, and migrate.Road mortality and habitat fragmentation not only affect individual animals, but they can also impact species on the population level, causing a serious reduction in survival probability. The degree of aversion to roads may vary by species, age group, and gender but the causes are similar: dangerous and unsuitable habitat due to road width, high vehicle volume, and high vehicle speed. Roads contribute to habitat fragmentation when animals become reluctant to cross highways or when animals are killed trying to cross. Reduced connectivity in the landscape is the result of habitat fragmentation. For animals, the degree to which the landscape facilitates or impedes movement is called wildlife connectivity. This means that wildlife vehicle collisions have not only become more common, but they also represent a growing percentage of all collisions that occur.īoth humans and wildlife deserve to safely move between destinations. ![]() From 1990 to 2004, the number of wildlife vehicle collisions in the US increased 50% while the total number of crashes has remained more or less the same.The total number of large mammal vehicle collisions has been estimated at one to two million in the United States and at 45,000 in Canada annually.In the United States, wildlife vehicle collisions were estimated to cause 211 human fatalities, 29,000 human injuries, and over $1 billion in property damage annually.2 in the nation for wildlife vehicle collisions, according to a 2016 study by State Farm Insurance, with Montanans hitting deer about 13,300 times a year. TypeĬorrugated metal pipe or concrete box culvert The following table details the types and dimensions of the underpasses on US 93 North. We appreciate your interest, but please do not approach or enter the wildlife crossing structures it is not allowed. Part of the success of wildlife crossing structures comes from animals feeling secure in approaching or crossing the structures. You can find dimensions of each of the wildlife crossing structures in this table. Typically, you can find them near stream crossings and areas with protected habitat on both sides of the road. The structures are located in areas known for heavy wild life crossings and mortality, and/or locations where the surrounding landscape was best suited for the structures. The Montana Department of Transportation, Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes, and Federal Highways Administration constructed these passages to improve safety by reducing wildlife-vehicle collisions and to protect wildlife migration corridors. 8.7 miles of road length with wildlife fencing on both sides.41 fish and wildlife crossings (including the Animals’ Trail). ![]() That Animals’ Trail may be the most visible, but it’s just one of dozens of fish and wildlife crossing structures that line the 56-mile stretch of highway. Highway 93 on the Flathead Indian Reservation, you’ve likely seen the “Animals’ Trail”, a 197-feet wide vegetated bridge that provides safe passage for wildlife to cross over the busy highway. ![]()
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