PLoS Biology (Jun 2016)

Border Security Fencing and Wildlife: The End of the Transboundary Paradigm in Eurasia?

  • John D C Linnell,
  • Arie Trouwborst,
  • Luigi Boitani,
  • Petra Kaczensky,
  • Djuro Huber,
  • Slaven Reljic,
  • Josip Kusak,
  • Aleksandra Majic,
  • Tomaz Skrbinsek,
  • Hubert Potocnik,
  • Matt W Hayward,
  • E J Milner-Gulland,
  • Bayarbaatar Buuveibaatar,
  • Kirk A Olson,
  • Lkhagvasuren Badamjav,
  • Richard Bischof,
  • Steffen Zuther,
  • Urs Breitenmoser

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.1002483
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 14, no. 6
p. e1002483

Abstract

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The ongoing refugee crisis in Europe has seen many countries rush to construct border security fencing to divert or control the flow of people. This follows a trend of border fence construction across Eurasia during the post-9/11 era. This development has gone largely unnoticed by conservation biologists during an era in which, ironically, transboundary cooperation has emerged as a conservation paradigm. These fences represent a major threat to wildlife because they can cause mortality, obstruct access to seasonally important resources, and reduce effective population size. We summarise the extent of the issue and propose concrete mitigation measures.