Using multi-scale distribution and movement effects along a montane highway to identify optimal crossing locations for a large-bodied mammal community.

ABSTRACT: Roads are a major cause of habitat fragmentation that can negatively affect many mammal populations. Mitigation measures such as crossing structures are a proposed method to reduce the negative effects of roads on wildlife, but the best methods for determining where such structures should be implemented, and how their effects might differ between species in mammal communities is largely unknown. We investigated the effects of a major highway through south-eastern British Columbia, Canada on several mammal species to determine how the highway may act as a barrier to animal movement, and how species may differ in their crossing-area preferences. We collected track data of eight mammal species across two winters, along both the highway and pre-marked transects, and used a multi-scale modeling

SUBMITTER: Schuster R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3817594 | biostudies-literature | 2013

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature