On the Road Without a Map: Why We Need an “Ethic of Road Ecology”

Over the past two decades, our knowledge of the ecological impacts of roads has increased rapidly. It is now clear that the environmental effects of transportation infrastructure are inextricable from transportation benefits to economic, social, and cultural values. Despite the necessity of optimizing these multiple values, road planners, scientists, and practitioners have no established methodology or pluralistic approach to address growing ethical complexities. We articulate five ethical issues that could be addressed by developing an ethic of road ecology in order to facilitate the identification, reasoning, and harmonization of ethical dimensions of road planning and development. This inquiry into road ecology can draw lessons from existing applied ethics, such as in ecological restoration and urban planning, to build a narrative that is informed by both science and ethics. We illustrate five ethical issues presented through case studies that elaborate on the motivations, responsibilities, and duties that should be considered in ethically and scientifically complicated road building decisions. To address these issues, we encourage the development of a code of ethics, dedicated intellectual forums, and practical guidance to assist road planners, and more broadly transportation practitioners, to resolve complex ethical quandaries systematically. We hope this perspective encourages conversation for a holistic yet pragmatic approach to this applied ethics problem, while also assisting responsible parties as they navigate difficult moral terrain.

Implications for conservation and game management of the roadkill levels of the endemic Iberian hare (Lepus granatensis)

The Iberian hare (Lepus granatensis) is an important small game species endemic to the Iberian Peninsula for which the incidence of roadkill is unknown. We surveyed Iberian hare–vehicle accidents on road networks in southern Spain, focusing on roads that mainly run through favorable habitats for this species: Mediterranean landscapes with plots of arable crops, olive groves, and vineyards. We recorded roadkills over a 5-month period, estimated hare accident densities on roads, and compared these numbers to hare hunting yields in adjoining hunting estates. We also analyzed the spatial patterns of and potential factors influencing hare roadkills. We detected the existence of black spots for hare roadkills in areas with high landscape heterogeneity that also included embankments and nearby crossroads and had high traffic intensity. Hare roadkill levels ranged from 5 to 25% of the annual harvest of hares killed on neighboring hunting estates. We suggest that road collisions should be considered in Iberian hare conservation in addition to hunting, since they may represent an additive source of mortality. Game managers should address the issue of hare roadkill in harvest planning to compensate for hare accidents, adjusting hunting quotas to account for this unnatural source of mortality. Our results suggest future directions for applied research in road ecology, including further work on demographic compensation and roadkill mitigation.

Badger territoriality maintained despite disturbance of major road construction

Road ecology has traditionally focused on the impact of in-situ and functional roads on wildlife. However, road construction also poses a major, yet understudied, threat and the implications for key aspects of animal behaviour are unknown. Badgers (Meles meles) have been implicated in the transmission of tuberculosis to cattle. There are concerns that environmental disturbances, including major road construction, can disrupt badger territoriality, promoting the spread of the disease to cattle. To address these knowledge gaps the ranging behaviour of a medium-density Irish badger population was monitored using GPS-tracking collars before, during, and after a major road realignment project that bisected the study area. We estimated badgers’ home range sizes, nightly distances travelled, and the distance and frequency of extra-territorial excursions during each phase of the study and quantified any changes to these parameters. We show that road construction had a very limited effect on ranging behaviour. A small increase in nightly distance during road construction did not translate into an increase in home range size, nor an increase in the distance or frequency of extra-territorial excursions during road construction. In addition, suitable mitigation measures to prevent badger deaths appeared to ensure that normal patterns of ranging behaviour continued once the new road was in place. We recommend that continuous badger-proof fencing be placed along the entire length of new major roads, in combination with appropriately sited underpasses. Our analysis supports the view that road construction did not cause badgers to change their ranging behaviour in ways likely to increase the spread of tuberculosis.

The SLOSS dilemma of road ecology: Are several small wildlife crossing structures better than a single large?

Crossing structures for large wildlife are increasingly being constructed at major roads and railways in many countries, and current guidelines for wildlife mitigation at linear infrastructures tend to advocate for large crossing structures sited at major movement corridors for the target species. The concept of movement corridors has however been challenged, and pinching animal movements into bottlenecks entail risks. In this paper, I address the SLOSS dilemma of road ecology, i.e., the discussion whether a Single Large Or Several Small crossing structures along a linear barrier would produce the most benefit for wildlife. I point out risks, ecological as well as practical, with investing in one large crossing structure, and list a number of situations where it may be more beneficial to distribute the conservation efforts in the landscape by constructing several smaller crossing structures; for example when the ecological knowledge is insufficient, when animal interactions are expected to be significant, when the landscape changes over time, or when future human development cannot be controlled. I argue that such situations are often what infrastructure planning faces, and that the default strategy therefore should be to distribute rather than to concentrate passage opportunities along major transport infrastructures. I suggest that distributing passage opportunities over several smaller crossing structures would convey a risk diversification, and that this strategy could facilitate the planning of wildlife mitigation. What to choose would however depend on, i.a., landscape composition and ecology, and on relationships among target species. A single large should be selected where it is likely that it can serve a large proportion of target animals, and where the long-term functionality of the crossing structure can be guaranteed. I illustrate how species and regional differences may influence the choice, using the case of ungulates in Sweden. New research is needed to support trade-offs between size and number of crossing structures. Cost-effectiveness analyses of wildlife crossing structures are currently rare and need to be further explored. Camera trapping and video surveillance of crossing structures provide opportunities to analyze details concerning, for example, any individual biases according to sex, age, status and grouping, and any antagonism between species and individuals. Wildlife ecology research need to better address questions posed by road and railway planning regarding the importance of specific movement routes and movement distances.

DISTANCE LEARNING : CONNECTING WITH STUDENTS IN THE COVID-19 ERA

Mother Earth is terribly sick today, and what has muddied the waters is the unwelcomed visit of the one-eyed novel Coronavirus (Covid-19). It is another symptom of the serious diseases the planet is suffering from. It is like a heavy disaster that has ravaged everything in its path, killing thousands and thousands of people and causing countless of harmful effects; some of them are terribly damaging and detrimental while others are more or less considered as blessings in disguise. It is spreading day after day like a wildfire in every nook and corner of the world with no possible curative vaccine so far. Nonetheless, and regardless the pains, I feel that there is always something good in every bad situation even if may not seem like for a lot of people as the quote goes” Every day may not be good, but there is something good in everyday”. It is so obvious that with the current pandemic many positive and unexpected things are floating over the surface. Examples of these blessings include “reduction in air pollution 20-30% in many cases in major cities around the world” (Airborne Nitrogen Dioxide Plummets Over China, 2020). Currently, the skies are bluer, the environment is cleaner and even people seem to be more responsible than any time before. In addition, we notice the perceptible decline in the number of traffic crashes as “Fraser Shilling, director of the Road Ecology Center at the University of California at Davis, found that highway accidents—including those involving an injury or fatality—fell by half after the state’s shelter-in-place order on 19 March”. (Shilling F, 2020). Moreover, People have understood that health is better than any other wealth because it is the most precious gift one can own. Furthermore, we have learnt to keep going in sadness and sorrow as Roy T. Bennett explains, “Your hardest times often lead to the greatest moments of your life. Keep going. Tough situations build strong people in the end”. (Bennett, 2020). Besides, for us as learners and educators, the priceless gift of this pandemic is distance learning, which is another suitable alternative to bridge the distance with the learners and assure the continuity of their education as an urgent response to the actual health emergency. If the virus has succeeded to shut schools and quarantine people all over the globe, it surely won’t prevent learners to seek knowledge.

Environmental Factors Determinate Roadkill Levels of the Endemic Iberian Species, Iberian Hare (Lepus Granatensis)

Lepus granatensis is an Iberian Peninsula endemic species and one of the most important small game species. We surveyed Iberian hare-vehicle accidents in roads network in southern Spain, analysing the Mediterranean landscape, the main habitats of this species. We recorded roadkill of roads during 6-month, compared hare roadkill densities to hare hunting yields. We analyzed the spatial patterns and factors that could be influencing the hare road kill. We detected blackspots of hare road kill in areas with high landscape heterogeneity and included embankments, intersections roads and high traffic intensity. The hare roadkill ranged between 6% and 41% of the annual harvest of hares killed on neighbouring hunting estates. We therefore consider it highly relevant to take into account the hare road kill, especially in hare hunting areas, suggesting to gamekeepers and managers addressing the issue of road kill of hares. It would be necessary that hunting quotas be adjusted in territories where the additive effect of these non-natural hare mortalities converge. Results point to future directions for applied research in road ecology, which would include demographic compensation and roadkill mitigation. Our methodology could be of wide use to identify lagomorphs’ road kill blackspots by analysing environmental spatial patterns.

Getting From Here To There - Mainstreaming Wildlife Crossing Structures Through Transdisciplinary Design Approaches To Collaborative Planning

The effectiveness of wildlife crossing structures in mitigating the impacts of roads on species and ecosystems have been well-documented in scientific literature. Despite this, there are challenges associated with translating ecological knowledge into policy and practice. The study examines the planning process for wildlife crossing infrastructure using a case study in the context of the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area and explored the potential of transdisciplinary collaboration and design thinking to enhance landscape connectivity. The study followed an iterative design research method incorporating knowledge from literature review, policy analysis and subject matter professional expertise derived through participant observation through work with the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority. This supported the development of a conceptual framework for actionable research to encourage the co-creation of practical knowledge and specific planning solutions. In addition, the study contributes valuable insight to the broader literature of sustainable landscape planning, road ecology and transportation planning.

Getting From Here To There - Mainstreaming Wildlife Crossing Structures Through Transdisciplinary Design Approaches To Collaborative Planning

The effectiveness of wildlife crossing structures in mitigating the impacts of roads on species and ecosystems have been well-documented in scientific literature. Despite this, there are challenges associated with translating ecological knowledge into policy and practice. The study examines the planning process for wildlife crossing infrastructure using a case study in the context of the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area and explored the potential of transdisciplinary collaboration and design thinking to enhance landscape connectivity. The study followed an iterative design research method incorporating knowledge from literature review, policy analysis and subject matter professional expertise derived through participant observation through work with the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority. This supported the development of a conceptual framework for actionable research to encourage the co-creation of practical knowledge and specific planning solutions. In addition, the study contributes valuable insight to the broader literature of sustainable landscape planning, road ecology and transportation planning.

The implications of vehicle collisions for the Endangered endemic Zanzibar red colobus Piliocolobus kirkii

Roads affect wildlife in a variety of negative ways. Road ecology studies have mostly concentrated on areas in the northern hemisphere despite the potentially greater impact of roads on biodiversity in tropical habitats. Here, we examine 4 years (January 2016–December 2019) of opportunistic observations of mammalian roadkill along a road intersecting Jozani-Chwaka Bay National Park, Unguja, Zanzibar. In particular, we assess the impact of collisions on the population of an endemic primate, the Endangered Zanzibar red colobus Piliocolobus kirkii. Primates accounted for the majority of roadkill in this dataset. Monthly rainfall was not associated with roadkill frequency for mammals generally, nor for the Zanzibar red colobus. No single age–sex class of colobus was found dead more often than expected given their occurrence in the local population. The overall effect of roadkill on colobus populations in habitats fragmented by roads is unknown given the lack of accurate, long-term life history data for this species. Our findings suggest that mortality from collisions with vehicles in some groups of colobus is within the range of mortality rates other primates experience under natural predation. Unlike natural predators, however, vehicles do not kill selectively, so their impact on populations may differ. Although a comparison with historical accounts suggests that the installation of speedbumps along the road near the Park's entrance has led to a significant decrease in colobus roadkill, further actions to mitigate the impact of the road could bring substantial conservation benefits.

Predicting spatial and seasonal patterns of wildlife-vehicle collisions in high-risk areas

ContextVehicle collisions with wildlife can injure or kill animals, threaten human safety, and threaten the viability of rare species. This has led to a focus in road-ecology research on identifying the key predictors of ‘road-kill’ risk, with the goal of guiding management to mitigate its impact. However, because of the complex and context-dependent nature of the causes of risk exposure, modelling road-kill data in ways that yield consistent recommendations has proven challenging.AimHere we used a novel multi-model machine-learning approach to identify the spatio-temporal predictors, such as traffic volume, road shape, surrounding vegetation and distance to human settlements, associated with road-kill risk.MethodsWe collected data on the location, identity and size of each road mortality across four seasons along eight roads in southern Tasmania – a ‘road-kill hotspot’ of management concern. We focused on three large-bodied and frequently impacted crepuscular Australian marsupial herbivore species, the rufous-bellied pademelon (Thylogale billardierii), Bennett’s wallaby (Macropus rufogriseus) and the bare-nosed wombat (Vombatus ursinus). We fit the point-location data using ‘lasso-regularization’ of a logistic generalized linear model (LL-GLM) and out-of-bag optimization of a decision-tree-based ‘random forests’ (RF) algorithm.ResultsThe RF model, with high-level feature interactions, yielded superior results to the linear additive model, with a RF classification accuracy of 84.8% for the 871 road-kill observations and a true skill statistic of 0.708, compared to 61.2% and 0.205 for the LL-GLM.ConclusionsForested areas with no roadside barrier fence along curved sections of road posed the highest risk to animals. Seasonally, the frequency of wildlife-vehicle collisions increased notably for females during oestrus, when they were more dispersive and so had a higher encounter rate with roads.ImplicationsThese findings illustrate the value of using data-driven approaches to predictive modelling, as well as offering a guide to practical management interventions that can mitigate road-related hazards.