Conservation Northwest

Roads and wildlife Paula MacKay Research associate, Western Transportation Institute Seeing fresh wolf tracks Top carnivores on the move It's a chilly day in mid-February, and I'm standing on an old logging road in the Teanaway region of central Washington. As my husband and his graduate student discuss plans for the afternoon, I carefully study the shadows of a nearby drainage—hoping to catch a fleeting glimpse of a resident gray wolf. Four years ago, when I was a newcomer to the area, this would have been wishful thinking; wolves hadn't lived here in decades, and had only recently re-established themselves in Okanogan County to our north. But today, thanks to the tenacity of a top carnivore both celebrated and reviled, and to the wildness of Washington's rugged North Cascades Ecosystem, there are fresh wolf tracks at my feet: a tangible sign that one of the state's latest confirmed packs is alive and presumably well in its present surroundings. Of course, the story doesn't end here. Like other carnivores, wolves must roam far and wide to survive, and dispersing animals often wander great distances from their natal territory before settling down again. Assuming all goes well, at least some members of the Teanaway pack will eventually move on, just as the pack's original members made their way to the Teanaway last year. The big question is: where will they go? From the hillside where I watched for wolves this winter, I could hear and see the endless stream of vehicles traveling along the bustling I-90 corridor. Within a day's walk, a wolf Continued next page A tragic, too common scene: This American marten didn't make it across Highway 20 in the Cascades. Photo Robert Long/WTI Leaders in road ecology In 2007, the Western Transportation Institute (WTI), of Montana State University, established a field office in Ellensburg, Washington, to help WSDOT conduct wildlife monitoring prior to installation of wildlife crossing structures at I-90 Snoqualmie Pass East. An international leader in the field of road ecology, WTI is gathering preconstruction monitoring data, which when compared with postconstruction data, will Paula MacKay installs a remote provide a scientific camera. Photo Robert Long/WTI means of evaluating the effectiveness of structures in reducing wildlife-vehicle collisions and enhancing wildlife movement. With remote cameras and other monitoring techniques, WTI is gathering information about where and how wildlife are currently using the I-90 corridor. WTI and the I-90 Wildlife Bridges Coalition are also collecting data from motorists, who are encouraged to report their wildlife sightings on I-90 between North Bend and Easton at i90wildlifewatch.org. Meanwhile, in Banff National Park in Alberta, WTI's Anthony Clevenger has been monitoring wildlife crossing structures on the Trans-Canada Highway for 15 years. This research has resulted in the most comprehensive body of scientific information in the world on how wildlife respond to wildlife crossing mitigation. In the past decade and a half, Dr. Clevenger and his associates have documented more than 200,000 crossings performed by a broad range of wildlife, from large mammals, including grizzly and black bears, wolves, cougars, coyotes, Canada lynx, wolverines, deer, elk, moose, and bighorn sheep, to smaller animals, such as hoary marmots, striped skunks, garter snakes, boreal toads, and myriad other species. Monitoring at Banff has also shown that large mammals require an adaption period before using new wildlife crossing structures—perhaps four years or more. Continued next page

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