“Tools are now in place, and the state has increasingly committed meaningful funding to get these projects done.The term “wildlife crossing” describes a variety of structures that are designed or retrofitted to provide safe passage for wildlife above or below a highway. “We knew that this needed to be done,” Newkirk said. In Orange County, the Irvine-Laguna Wildlife Corridor would connect a national forest to wild coastal terrains.
Other areas of California have proposed construction of wildlife bridges or tunnels. Habitat fragmentation, disease, territorial battles, rodenticide poisoning, and human-caused wildfires have contributed to the decline.Īlthough mountain lions are not a threatened species in California, biologists argued in 2019 that six isolated and genetically distinct cougar clans found from the Santa Cruz to the U.S.-Mexico border make up a subpopulation that should be listed as endangered. In Southern California, mountain lion populations have been steadily declining in the Santa Ana, San Gabriel, San Bernardino, Santa Monica, Santa Cruz and Tehachapi mountain ranges. From 2018 to 2020, more than 44,000 wildlife-vehicle collisions were reported on California roads resulting in human and animal deaths, and damage totaling about $1 billion, according to the UC Davis Road Ecology Center. Human interactions also affect species’ populations. This can cause slower population growth, including issues related to malformed sperm and kinked tails, which make extinction more likely in the future. Roads, highways, and other developments cut habitats in half, preventing animals from safely traveling back and forth, Wilmers said. Cougars’ works for wildlife crossing over 101: What would it look like?Ī bridge for wildlife to safely cross the 101 Freeway. It will be the largest wildlife corridor of its kind in the world.Ĭalifornia ‘Save L.A. In 2014, the nonprofit #SaveLACougars campaign began raising money to build the Liberty Canyon Wildlife Crossing in Agoura Hills, which has since broken ground and is expected to open in 2025. The late P-22, a celebrity mountain lion that prowled around Griffith Park and beyond, inspired the need for animal crossings when it was discovered in 2012 that he regularly made a 20-mile journey from the Santa Monica Mountains, dodging commuter traffic, bridges and roads. This is the first time a GPS-collared mountain lion has crossed the freeway near the Santa Monica Mountains during the course of a 17-year study.Īnimal crossings are becoming more common throughout California in an effort by conservationists to decrease road kills and increase genetic diversity among wildlife living near freeways and residential developments. “Habitat areas need to be connected to one another so that a wide-ranging species like mountain lions can get from place to place, establish new territories and enhance their genetic diversity.”ĭevelopment of the Bay Area is isolating the Santa Cruz Mountains, with a southern portion of the area divided by the highway, said Morgan Robertson, the acting chief of biology and environmental engineering for Caltrans District 5.Īnimals do cross roadways using existing infrastructure, she said, but some species need sturdier and larger structures to pass safely.Ĭalifornia First tracked mountain lion crosses the 405 Freeway in big moment for wildlife preservation “Wildlife needs a lot more than just isolated islands of habitats,” said Sarah Newkirk, the executive director of the nonprofit Land Trust of Santa Cruz County. The wildlife corridor would connect the Santa Cruz and Gabilan mountain ranges and expand the habitat for mountain lions, deer, bobcats and other animals.
A first of its kind wildlife crossing in Northern California has been proposed over Highway 101 in San Benito County - the latest project in the state’s efforts to provide safe passage for mountain lions and other animals over dangerous roadways.Ībout $21 million has been raised to fund the overpass at 2,600-acre Rocks Ranch, the nonprofit Land Trust of Santa Cruz County announced earlier this year.
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