Wildlife – The Western Transportation Institute

Journal for Nature Conservation publishes Road Ecologist’s research on endangered cheetahs

Posted on April 16th, 2018

WTI Research Scientist Tony Clevenger has co-authored a journal article on the impacts of road expansion on cheetah populations. In June, the Journal for Nature Conservation will publish “Road expansion: A challenge to conservation of mammals, with particular emphasis on the endangered Asiatic cheetah in Iran.” The article summarizes a study to identify hotspot locations along an extremely high-risk road for mammals in northeast Iran (Touran Biosphere Reserve [TBR]) and proposes mitigation measures for mammals such as the Asiatic cheetah and Persian gazelles. The full article is currently available on the Science Direct website.

Citation: Mohammadi, A., Almasieh, K., Clevenger, A., Fatemizadeh, F., Rezaei, A., Jowkar, H., and Kaboli, M. (2018). Road expansion: A challenge to conservation of mammals, with particular emphasis on the endangered Asiatic cheetah in Iran. Journal for Nature Conservation. Volume 43 (June 2018): pp 8-18.

Off to Australia! Road Ecologist Invited to Deliver Keynote at International Conference

Posted on April 2nd, 2018

Research Scientist Marcel Huijser, of WTI’s Road Ecology program, will travel to Australia at the end of April for the 2018 Conference of the Australasian Network for Ecology and Transportation (ANET). Marcel has been invited to deliver the keynote address, entitled “Road Ecology – Are We Taking the Right Turns?” at the plenary session on the opening day of the conference.

ANET is a professional network dedicated to the research, design and implementation of environmentally-sensitive infrastructure across Australasia (Australia, New Zealand, and neighboring islands). Serving government, industry, scientists and community groups, ANET’s international conferences aim to share global best practices for identifying and mitigating the ecological impacts of all types of linear infrastructure and transport, including road, rail, pipelines and utility easements.

Review of Proposed Bighorn Sheep Mitigation Measures Along Montana Hwy 200, East of Thompson Falls, Montana

Marcel Huijser Presents at Two Western Wildlife Forums

Posted on March 12th, 2018

WTI Research Scientist Marcel Huijser was on the road in February, speaking at two major regional wildlife events in Colorado and California. On February 8, he was invited to give the keynote address (“Road Ecology, are we taking the right turns?”) at the 2018 Annual Meeting of the Colorado Chapter of the Wildlife Society. On February 21, he spoke at the “Bridges and Biology” workshop hosted by the California Department of Transportation, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). At this event, Marcel led a workshop session called “National and International Perspectives,” which focused on wildlife usage of crossing structures, including how to increase their effectiveness.

To learn more about Marcel’s research, visit the Road Ecology webpage.

Global Tiger Forum Invites Rob Ament to India

Posted on March 5th, 2018

In February, Road Ecology Program Manager Rob Ament participated in a five day Road Ecology workshop in Nagpur, Maharashtra, India, entitled “Capacity Building in Designing Mitigation Measures along Linear Infrastructure in Tiger Landscapes.” Rob gave seven presentations at the event, where attendees from India, Nepal, and the U.S. gathered for three days of talks and two days of field trips to central India highway, railway and canal mitigation locations. The week was hosted by the Wildlife Conservation Trust and co-sponsored by Global Tiger Forum and the US Fish and Wildlife Service’s Office of International Programs. Rob also had the opportunity to view other protected species, including rhinos and elephants.

Elephant Guard in Kaziranga Forest, India

Typical canal in central India, where often large animals can become trapped. Vehicle bridges and overpasses have been shown (via motion sensitive cameras) to safely pass tigers and other species across this type of infrastructure.

New Wildlife Overpass Planned for Trans-Canada Highway (TCH)

Posted on February 5th, 2018

WTI Research Scientist Tony Clevenger was interviewed by the Rocky Mountain Outlook last week about a new wildlife overpass near Canmore, Alberta and Banff National Park. In “Plans for new TCH overpass in the works,” Clevenger discusses the role of wildlife overpasses in reconnecting grizzly bear populations, which is critical for the long-term viability of the species. The article also highlights Clevenger’s work with colleague Adam Ford to study the wildlife crossing structures in Banff for 17 years, research which revealed grizzly bear travel patterns and the types of crossing structures which are most effective. The full article is available on the Rocky Mountain Outlook website.

WTI’s Rob Ament Travels to Kenya

Posted on January 29th, 2018

Earlier this month, WTI Road Ecology Program Manager, Rob Ament, traveled to Nairobi, Kenya for the first African meeting of the Transport Working Group (TWG). Formed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Connectivity Conservation Specialist Group (CCSG), the TWG provides guidance on strategies that avoid, minimize, mitigate or compensate for the impacts of surface transportation systems on wildlife connectivity. The TWG is mobilizing road ecologists and transport professional around the world to develop connectivity-minded infrastructure development guidelines for governments and development banks to adopt.

Photo of 16 members of Transport Working Group who attending meeting in Nairobi, Kenya — The Transport Working Group in Nairobi, Kenya (Rob Ament, 7th from left)

The meeting took place at the campus of the Africa Wildlife Foundation in Nairobi, Kenya. Members represented consultants, NGOs, government agencies, researchers and academia. The agenda and discussions covered the TWG’s scoping document, work plan, and communications support of TWG, as well as the development of guidance documents and transport mitigation resources. Rob Ament, who serves as co-chair of the group, will help develop a briefing paper for the TWG regarding the Multilateral Development Bank Team and how to engage them in transport projects in Africa as well as on other continents. Rob also gave a presentation about the TWG in Arusha, Tanzania, at another meeting hosted by the CCSG in east Africa.

MSU Highlights WTI’s Wildlife Research in Banff National Park

Posted on January 22nd, 2018

Image of elk near entrance of a wildlife underpass — Elk approaches wildlife underpass in Banff National Park (*courtesy of Tony Clevenger*)

Montana State University News Service interviewed three WTI researchers for an in-depth article on WTI’s “influential research” on reducing wildlife vehicle collisions. “MSU’s Western Transportation Institute featured for research on wildlife crossings” is currently on the MSU website and was highlighted on the home page last week. Tony Clevenger was interviewed regarding his 17 years of research in Banff National Park, which has documented the effectiveness of the wildlife overpasses on the Trans-Canada Highway. Rob Ament and Steve Albert discussed how the crossing structures are influencing the development of similar efforts by transportation agencies around the world, and how the research helped establish WTI as an internationally recognized center for road ecology.

Tony Clevenger Radio Interview on Innovative Wildlife Research Techniques

Posted on January 22nd, 2018

WTI Research Scientist Tony Clevenger was interviewed by WHYY radio in Canada regarding his 17-year research project to evaluate the wildlife crossing structures in Banff National Park. The discussion highlighted the research techniques used to determine which animals were using the crossing structures; these techniques included animal tracks, hair traps, and remote wildlife cameras. The entire audio interview is available on the WHYY website. The online article also features photos of a fox, wolf, elk, linx and bear using the wildlife crossings, and a video clip of a bear and two cubs on one of the structures.

Canadian Geographic Marks 20-year Anniversary of Banff Wildlife Overpasses

Posted on December 19th, 2017

November 2017 marked the 20^th anniversary of the first wildlife overpass in Banff National Park. Since then, several dozen crossing structures have been installed as part of the reconstruction of the Trans-Canada Highway, which passes through the park. Canadian Geographic has published an extensive feature article on the development of the crossings, with a focus on how effective they have been in reducing animal vehicle collisions by approximately 80%. Both Tony Clevenger and Rob Ament were interviewed for the article. Tony discusses his 17-years of data that documents how 11 species of large mammals have used the structure more than 200,000 times. Rob describes how the Banff project has become a model for wildlife conservation in many other countries. The full article is available here.

Also, read more about the Road Ecology team’s work in Banff National Park on the WTI website.