Individual study: Wildlife use of culverts beneath US Highway 441 in Paynes Prairie State Reserve, Florida, USA
Dodd C.K., Barichivich W.J. & Smith L.L. (2004) Effectiveness of a barrier wall and culverts in reducing wildlife mortality on a heavily traveled highway in Florida. Biological Conservation, 118, 619-631
This study is summarised as evidence for the intervention(s) shown on the right. The icon shows which synopsis it is relevant to.
Install culverts or tunnels as road crossings
A replicated study in 2001–2002 of eight culverts underneath a highway through a freshwater marsh in Florida, USA (Dodd, Barichivich & Smith 2004) found that 13 frog and two salamander species used culverts and road mortality declined. A total of 656 frogs and six salamanders were captured using culverts. Following construction of a barrier wall linking culverts, frog species using culverts increased from five to 13 and frogs trapped increased from 0.006 to 0.085/trap night. Ranid frog mortality declined dramatically following installation of the barrier wall-culvert system. However, tree frog mortality appeared to increase (from 149 to 194). Two dry box culverts (1.8 x 1.8 x 44 m) and two partially submerged box culverts (2.4 x 2.4 x 44 m) already existed. In 2001, four additional dry/wet cylindrical culverts (0.9 x 44 m) were installed at the same time as a 3 km barrier wall along the highway, parallel to wetland prairie. Culverts were 200–500 m apart along the wall. Monitoring was undertaken on five nights/week from March 2001 to March 2002. Ten wire screen-mesh funnel traps were placed in each box culvert and four crayfish traps in each cylindrical culvert.