Wildlife Corridors - An Overview
While roads and highways are excellent for connecting people to their destinations, they can also disconnect many wildlife species from their home habitats. As our landscapes become increasingly fragmented and broken-up by busy roads, housing developments and commercial areas, natural habitat is divided into ever-smaller pieces of viable land for animals to establish territory, find food and water, reproduce, and meet their living requirements. Since every species in a landscape is an irreplaceably essential part of a thriving whole, we must find solutions to balance the needs of a growing human population with the needs of our surrounding wildlife communities.
Wildlife corridors have become a valuable tool in natural resource planning and management. Corridors are areas of habitat that link similar habitat patches into a landscape that facilitates the movement of species among isolated habitat patches. Corridors can be natural features such as a narrow strip of forest or meadow, or structures such as highway overpasses and underpasses.
Professional researchers are working with The Big Sur Land Trust to understand the role wildlife corridors can play in the ecological health of our region. Wildlife ecologist Tanya Diamond is currently studying the importance of wildlife corridors that connect the lands of Fort Ord to Marks Ranch and beyond. Her research is critical in helping promote the safety of both animals and people; when mountain lions, for instance, appear in developed neighborhoods, it is a sign that the lions’ habitat is so fragmented they have no choice but to enter populated areas. Understanding and protecting wildlife corridors can therefore allow animals to thrive in their own natural environments. Through collaborations with private landowners and others, The Big Sur Land Trust will continue to look for ways to support the maintenance of these critical pathways.
For more information about our work on understanding and maintaining wildlife corridors, contact Jim Keller, BSLT Easement Program Manager, at jkeller@bigsurlandtrust.org
