Utilisation of a wide underpass by mammals on an expressway in the Western Carpathians, S Poland

Mysłajek, Robert W.; Nowak, Sabina; Kurek, Korneliusz; Tołkacz, Katarzyna; Gewartowska, Olga

doi:10.25225/fozo.v65.i3.a8.2016

Cited by 10 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 51 publications

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“…In our research, wild boars were frequent users of the underpass. This result is in contrast to observations in mountain areas (Mysłajek et al 2016).…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 99%

“…The examined road underpasses were used most intensively in spring and least frequently in winter. The results confirm the observations made by Mysłajek et al (2016), where analogous relationship was reported. Furthermore, it is associated with a reduced tendency of wildlife migration and road crossing in winter (Kämmerle et al 2017).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

“…Furthermore, in western Poland we observed a much smaller difference between the numbers of domesticated and wild species despite the passages being situated in urbanized areas. In southern Poland, domesticated species accounted for 25% of all recorded animals (Mysłajek et al 2016). In examined underpasses, we noted high activity of domestic dogs, which could deter the activities of wild species.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 67%

“…There is a significant publication that discusses the usage of underpasses under expressways by wildlife in the mountains in the south of Poland (Mysłajek et al 2016). The authors indicate a higher efficiency of viaducts, which, on an annual scale, are used more intensively.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Use of underpasses by animals on a fenced expressway in a suburban area in western Poland

Ważna¹,

Kaźmierczak²,

Cichocki³

et al. 2020

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Expressways act as barriers to animals that block free movement in their habitats, especially when the roads are continuously fenced to prevent collisions between animals and vehicles. Various types of animal passages have been repeatedly studied in terms of their utility, albeit rather less frequently in the suburban environment. We conducted our research in a section of the fenced expressway S3 connecting two closely located cities in western Poland (Lubuskie province). Over the course of one year, we monitored four underpasses intended for small- and medium-sized animals using tracks. The underpasses were inspected weekly. Animal traces most frequently found belonged to roe deer Capreolus capreolus (20.9%), red fox Vulpes vulpes (15.1%), wild boar Sus scrofa (14%), and domestic dog Canis l. familiaris (12.4%). Surprisingly, the results of our study indicate that underpasses for small and medium mammals are also used by ungulate mammals. The use of the underpasses varied seasonally, being the highest in spring (37.9%) and the lowest in winter (10.4%). Moreover, seasonal differences in the use of passages were related to particular species/groups of animal species. We found that 22% of animals that entered the passage did not completely traverse it. People accounted for 17.1% of all stated traces in the underpasses. Stagnant water in the underpasses reduced the number of predatory mammals and wild boars using the underpasses but did not affect the activity of roe deer. These studies indicate that animal underpasses located in suburban areas are used by many species of animals despite the activity of humans and domesticated mammals.

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“…In our research, wild boars were frequent users of the underpass. This result is in contrast to observations in mountain areas (Mysłajek et al 2016).…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 67%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Use of underpasses by animals on a fenced expressway in a suburban area in western Poland

Ważna¹,

Kaźmierczak²,

Cichocki³

et al. 2020

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“…Currently the study area is crossed by a railway line and a motorway, with limited possibilities for safe crossing by wildlife. Furthermore, the existing underpass is not used by large mammals [54], indicating that they have to cross the transportation network in other locations. This shows that proper planning of road and railroad crossings is needed in the area to avoid the isolation of habitats and limit collision risk for moving animals.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Impact of Future Land Use Change on Large Carnivores Connectivity in the Polish Carpathians

Kaim

Ziółkowska

Szwagrzyk

et al. 2019

Land

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The Polish Carpathians, like many mountain areas in Europe, are currently facing dynamic land use changes that will shape their future landscapes. As there are many different possible scenarios of potential change, we compared three different land use scenarios up until the year 2060 and assessed their impact on the potential habitat connectivity of two large carnivores—wolf (Canis lupus) and lynx (Lynx lynx). We first analysed the main directions of change within and outside the pan-European wildlife corridor located in the western part of the Polish Carpathians. Then we calculated and compared least-cost paths among randomly selected points for each land use scenario separately. Our results showed that the main direction of change—forest cover increase—may positively influence habitat connectivity for both wolf and lynx. However, due to the future spread of settlements, this positive impact might be locally limited. Therefore, to realise the potential conservation opportunities resulting from on-going land use changes, adequate orientation of spatial planning towards habitat connectivity is crucial.

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How do King Cobras move across a major highway? Unintentional wildlife crossing structures may facilitate movement

Jones

Marshall

Smith

et al. 2022

Ecology and Evolution

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Global road networks continue to expand, and the wildlife responses to these landscape‐level changes need to be understood to advise long‐term management decisions. Roads have high mortality risk to snakes because snakes typically move slowly and can be intentionally targeted by drivers. We investigated how radio‐tracked King Cobras (Ophiophagus hannah) traverse a major highway in northeast Thailand, and if reproductive cycles were associated with road hazards. We surveyed a 15.3 km stretch of Highway 304 to determine if there were any locations where snakes could safely move across the road (e.g., culverts and bridges). We used recurse analyses to detect possible road‐crossing events, and used dynamic Brownian Bridge Movement Models (dBBMMs) to show movement pathways association with possible unintentional crossing structures. We further used Integrated Step Selection Functions (ISSF) to assess seasonal differences in avoidance of major roads for adult King Cobras in relation to reproductive state. We discovered 32 unintentional wildlife crossing locations capable of facilitating King Cobra movement across the highway. While our dBBMMs broadly revealed underpasses as possible crossing points, they failed to identify specific underpasses used by telemetered individuals; however, the tracking locations pre‐ and post‐crossing and photographs provided strong evidence of underpass use. Our ISSF suggested a lower avoidance of roads during the breeding season, although the results were inconclusive. With the high volume of traffic, large size of King Cobras, and a 98.8% success rate of crossing the road in our study (nine individuals: 84 crossing attempts with one fatality), we strongly suspect that individuals are using the unintentional crossing structures to safely traverse the road. Further research is needed to determine the extent of wildlife underpass use at our study site. We propose that more consistent integration of drainage culverts and bridges could help mitigate the impacts of roads on some terrestrial wildlife.

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Utilisation of a wide underpass by mammals on an expressway in the Western Carpathians, S Poland

Abstract: BioOne Complete (complete.BioOne.org) is a full-text database of 200 subscribed and open-access titles in the biological, ecological, and environmental sciences published by nonprofit societies, associations, museums, institutions, and presses.

Cited by 10 publications

References 51 publications

Use of underpasses by animals on a fenced expressway in a suburban area in western Poland

Use of underpasses by animals on a fenced expressway in a suburban area in western Poland

Impact of Future Land Use Change on Large Carnivores Connectivity in the Polish Carpathians

How do King Cobras move across a major highway? Unintentional wildlife crossing structures may facilitate movement

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