Investigation of Wildlife Crossing Structures in South Korea

Abstract

Roads, railways and infrastructure are constructed with consideration of their environmental impacts, especially habitat fragmentation. Wildlife crossing structures increase the permeability of roads and other linear infrastructures for wildlife by allowing animals to safely cross under or over roads and by reducing the risk of wildlife-vehicle collosions. We investigated the location and type of 564 wildlife crossing structures in South Korea. Between April and October 2023, we identified 365 overpasses and 199 underpasses of wildlife crossing structures respectively. Gyeonggi-do and Gyeongsangbuk-do had the largest number of wildlife crossing structures. This study can provide basic information for the effective management of wildlife crossing structures.

Keywords

• fragmentation
• road
• infrastructure
• ecological corridor
• road ecology