Maximizing the wildlife conservation value of road right-of-ways in an agriculturally dominated landscape

PloS One
Robert A McCleeryBrian D Peer

Abstract

There has been a growing recognition that the narrow linear strips of uncultivated vegetation that lie between roads and agricultural crops, referred to as roadside right-of-ways or verges, can serve as areas for the conservation of wildlife. The features of right-of-ways that should influence the composition of wildlife communities vary considerably. Our goal was to determine what features of right-of-ways increased the conservation potential of right-of-ways for wildlife in a grassland system dominated by agricultural production. We sampled 100 right-of-ways for birds and 92 right-of-ways for small mammals in McDonough and Warren Counties in west-central Illinois. We found that the sizes of right-of-ways and the amount of traffic on the adjacent roads synergistically worked to influence wildlife communities. On roads with low traffic, avian species richness increased rapidly with increased right-of-way width, while on roads with high traffic, avian richness increased only slightly with increasing right-of-way widths. We found that wider roadside right-of-ways (preferably across the road from equally wide right-of-ways) with thicker and taller vegetation had the greatest conservation value for birds and small mammals. The feat...Continue Reading

References

May 1, 1992·Biochemical Society Transactions·R C Hughes
May 7, 2002·Environmental Management·Richard T T FormanAnna M Hersperger
Jun 10, 2006·Trends in Ecology & Evolution·Cagan H Sekercioglu
Jan 23, 2008·Biostatistics·Martyn Plummer
Oct 23, 2008·Critical Reviews in Toxicology·Keith R SolomonGlen J Van Der Kraak
Sep 15, 2010·Ecology·Robert M DorazioMatthias Plattner
Feb 3, 2011·Conservation Biology : the Journal of the Society for Conservation Biology·A V KociolekD S Proppe
Feb 16, 2011·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·Eric F Lambin, Patrick Meyfroidt
May 7, 2011·Accident; Analysis and Prevention·Rinus JaarsmaJac-Paul Spaas
Aug 24, 2013·Biology Letters·Pierre Legagneux, Simon Ducatez
Nov 8, 2013·Proceedings. Biological Sciences·Christopher J W McClureJesse R Barber

❮ Previous
Next ❯

Citations

Dec 11, 2020·Journal of Environmental Quality·Shad D MillsPamela Sutton
Aug 14, 2021·Conservation Physiology·Alexander M ShephardEmilie C Snell-Rood

❮ Previous
Next ❯

Software Mentioned

lme4
R package R2WinBUGS
R
WinBUGS

Related Concepts

Trending Feeds

COVID-19

Coronaviruses encompass a large family of viruses that cause the common cold as well as more serious diseases, such as the ongoing outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19; formally known as 2019-nCoV). Coronaviruses can spread from animals to humans; symptoms include fever, cough, shortness of breath, and breathing difficulties; in more severe cases, infection can lead to death. This feed covers recent research on COVID-19.

Blastomycosis

Blastomycosis fungal infections spread through inhaling Blastomyces dermatitidis spores. Discover the latest research on blastomycosis fungal infections here.

Nuclear Pore Complex in ALS/FTD

Alterations in nucleocytoplasmic transport, controlled by the nuclear pore complex, may be involved in the pathomechanism underlying multiple neurodegenerative diseases including Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Frontotemporal Dementia. Here is the latest research on the nuclear pore complex in ALS and FTD.

Applications of Molecular Barcoding

The concept of molecular barcoding is that each original DNA or RNA molecule is attached to a unique sequence barcode. Sequence reads having different barcodes represent different original molecules, while sequence reads having the same barcode are results of PCR duplication from one original molecule. Discover the latest research on molecular barcoding here.

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

Chronic fatigue syndrome is a disease characterized by unexplained disabling fatigue; the pathology of which is incompletely understood. Discover the latest research on chronic fatigue syndrome here.

Evolution of Pluripotency

Pluripotency refers to the ability of a cell to develop into three primary germ cell layers of the embryo. This feed focuses on the mechanisms that underlie the evolution of pluripotency. Here is the latest research.

Position Effect Variegation

Position Effect Variagation occurs when a gene is inactivated due to its positioning near heterochromatic regions within a chromosome. Discover the latest research on Position Effect Variagation here.

STING Receptor Agonists

Stimulator of IFN genes (STING) are a group of transmembrane proteins that are involved in the induction of type I interferon that is important in the innate immune response. The stimulation of STING has been an active area of research in the treatment of cancer and infectious diseases. Here is the latest research on STING receptor agonists.

Microbicide

Microbicides are products that can be applied to vaginal or rectal mucosal surfaces with the goal of preventing, or at least significantly reducing, the transmission of sexually transmitted infections. Here is the latest research on microbicides.