Research
Making scientific research accessible
Here you’ll find easy-to-read summaries of scientifically rigorous, evidence-based and peer-reviewed publications from around the world to help you better plan, build and manage ecologically sustainable linear infrastructure.
Research summaries are listed chronologically according to when they were published here. To find information on a specific topic, please use the SEARCH function and search by keywords, including topic, species, location and/or author.
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Have you recently published a peer-reviewed scientific paper on transportation and ecology? Do you want practitioners all around the world to find and use your results? Then you need to contribute a Research Summary!
Priority regions and species to study and protect from road impacts in Latin America
We identified key areas and species that should be prioritized for conservation and research related to road impacts. In Latin America, vultures, armadillos, cuckoos and shrew opossums need protection, and Central America and northern South America are the regions with the greatest need for research.
More than 10,000 tons of wild mammals are killed on Brazilian roads yearly: Assessing the impacts and conservation implications of wildlife-vehicle collisions
Nearly 9 million medium- and large-sized mammals (>1kg) could be killed on Brazilian roads each year, representing an estimated wildlife biomass of over 10,000 tons. Mortality from roads is a major threat to wildlife conservation in Brazil, and further research and mitigation is urgently needed to avoid species extinction.
Barriers to fauna-sensitive road design and how we can overcome them
Our recent survey of the transport planning and policy literature revealed substantial barriers that obstruct the consideration and implementation of fauna-sensitive road design (FSRD). Although the review identified several ecological support tools that could be useful to transport practitioners, these are of limited use without ‘action-oriented’ research to support their adoption and application of FSRD more broadly.
Roadkill: vehicle collisions may be threatening the survival of some mammal populations
Mammal roadkill can negatively affect wildlife populations but exactly how it does so remains unclear. This study reviewed globally published studies to examine how roadkill affects populations.
What we know (and don't know) about bird collisions with power lines and how to mitigate them
Bird collisions with overhead powerlines is one of the most significant human causes of bird mortality worldwide, with estimates in the millions of birds killed annually and contributing to the decline of many species. We undertook a comprehensive literature review and identified the factors that increased bird collision risk with power lines, the existing mitigation measures, and remaining knowledge gaps.
Fences have big effects on land and wildlife around the world that are rarely measured
A republished article from The Conversation. An analysis of the ecological effects of fencing on ecosystems around the world.
Road Ecology Research in Africa
This research is a review of the road ecology publications and research that have been done in Africa to date to identify the areas and species that have been researched and the lessons learned from these as well as to identify recommendations for further areas of research.