Railway Ecology

Abstract

Railways play a major role in the global transportation system. Furthermore, railways are presently being promoted by several governments thanks to their economic and environmental advantages relative to other means of transportation. Although railways have clear advantages, they are not free of environmental problems. The objective of this book is to review, assess, and provide solutions to the impacts of railways on wildlife. We have divided the impacts of railways on biodiversity into four main topics: mortality, barrier effects, species invasions, and environmental disturbances, with the latter ranging from noise to chemical pollution. Railways share several characteristics with roads and with power lines when the trains are electric. Therefore, much can be learned from studies on the impacts of roads and power lines, taking into account, however, that in railways, the two are often combined. Besides the similarities with roads and power lines, railways have specific characteristics. For instance, railways have lower traffic intensity but trains usually have much higher speeds than road vehicles, and the electric structures in railways are typically lower than in most power lines. Thus, railways pose specific challenges and require specific mitigation measures, justifying calling the study of its impacts on biodiversity "railway ecology."

Wildlife mortality on roads and railways following highway mitigation

“…In general, the study of railway effects on wildlife has lagged far behind that of roads (Borda‐de‐Água et al. , Popp and Boyle ). Particularly in areas with complex topography, railways are often co‐aligned with roads and can impose similar negative effects on wildlife, such as mortality from train strikes (Kušta et al.…”

Predicting indirect effects of transportation network expansion on Asian elephants: Implications for environmental impact assessments

“…Consideration of wildlife is an essential component of environmental impact assessments (EIAs), which evaluate the impacts of projects on the environment and provide suggestions for mitigation (El Haggar, ; Karlson et al, ). Due to their large home range and vulnerability to vehicles, large mammals are given special attention in EIAs, especially in the last two decades (Borda–de–Água, ; Popp & Boyle, ). However, in practice, mitigation strategies such as animal passes and vehicle speed limits are narrowly focused on the direct negative impacts of linear features (Karlson et al, ).…”

Patterns of gene flow across multiple anthropogenic infrastructures: Insights from a multi-species approach

“…Railways are known to restrict gene flow in some amphibian species such as frogs or salamanders (e.g. Reh et al, 1990; Bartoszek and Greenwald, 2009) and many studies on train collision with wildlife reported a high abundance of amphibian kills (Borda-de Agua et al, 2017), representing up to 47 % of all vertebrate records (Heske, 2015). However, the railway in our study area had a low traffic density with approximately 10 trains/day, and train collisions may not be the only driver of the observed reduction in gene flow in A. obstetricans .…”

“…The railway was probably as attractive as the secondary road network for snakes, which may similarly explain gene flow enhancement observed in snakes. Railway embankments provide important alternative habitats for reptiles with optimal thermal conditions for basking (Graitson, 2006; Stoll, 2013; Borda-de Agua et al, 2017). Even active lines can harbour particularly high diversity in reptiles species (Graitson, 2006), notably because human presence is scarce and because reptiles can perceive vibrations transmitted through the rail tracks and the ballast when a train approaches, allowing them to reach a shelter before collision (Borda-de Agua et al, 2017).…”

“…The most obvious detrimental effects of LTIs on dispersal success are direct collisions with vehicles and physical crossing impediment when infrastructures are for instance fenced (Forman and Alexander, 1998; Trombulak and Frissell, 2000; Hels and Buchwald, 2001; Beebee, 2013; Barrientos et al, 2019). Most animals are affected, from small invertebrates to large mammals (Balkenhol and Waits, 2009; Fahrig and Rytwinski, 2009; Borda-de Agua et al, 2017). LTIs may also induce behavioral alterations that further affect nearby populations (Trombulak and Frissell, 2000; Ascensao et al, 2016).…”