Description: Wildlife Crossing Structures consists of points that describe the location and characteristics of structures that enable wildlife to safely cross highways. Wildlife Crossing Structures are habitat connectivity infrastructure that includes highway bridges, culverts, jumpouts, and wildlife guards. Bridges and culverts in the dataset were either designed and built for wildlife or are existing structures that wildlife use to safely cross over or under highways as documented by motion-triggered cameras. Wildlife jumpouts are ramp structures built to allow wildlife to escape the highway right-of-way when trapped inside of wildlife fencing. Wildlife guards, which are similar to cattle guards but larger, are installed to prevent wildlife from entering highways at intersecting side roads. The points in the dataset also have links to additional information such as pictures of the structures and construction plan sheets.
Copyright Text: Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT)
Description: Wildlife Barrier Fencing consists of lines that describe the characteristics of wildlife fences installed along state highways. Wildlife Barrier Fencing is part of habitat connectivity infrastructure that enables wildlife to safely cross highways or prevent wildlife-vehicle collisions. Wildlife fences are installed to prevent wildlife from crossing highways at grade and may also direct the movement of wildlife to structures, such as bridges and culverts, where highways can be crossed safely. The fence line segments in the dataset also have links to additional information such as pictures of the fence and construction plan sheets.
Copyright Text: Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT)
Description: Habitat Connectivity Investment Priorities are represented by two completely independent ranks, Ecological Stewardship and Wildlife-related Safety, and a third, Maximum Rank, that is simply the highest value found in Ecological Stewardship and Wildlife-related Safety ranks. These ranks were developed for the state highway system by 1-mile highway segment. The Ecological Stewardship rank reflects a highway segment’s overlap with the ranges of select Endangered or Threatened wildlife and its proximity to connected networks of habitat identified by the Washington Habitat Connectivity Working Group. The listed species selected for inclusion in the ranking process were those species known to be most affected by highways, either due to road mortality or behavioral avoidance or both. Lacking overlap with listed species’ ranges, a base score could still be given to highway segments that overlapped an area of high landscape integrity as identified by the Washington Habitat Connectivity Working Group (WHCWG). If a base score for any of these factors was assigned, rank values were then subject to multipliers for traffic volume and nearby blocks of public land. Highways that carry greater traffic volumes generally have a greater harmful effect on wildlife, both in terms of mortality and the barrier effect caused by behavioral avoidance. Protected lands (many public lands and private lands held in preserves or under protective easements) tend to offer a stable habitat base into the distant future and WSDOT investments in durable infrastructure are more likely to have long term benefits where public lands are present on one or both sides of the highway. The Safety Rank is a reflection of carcass removal and wildlife collision rates or simple overlap with the range of one of Washington’s larger wild animals. Identified carcass removal or collision problem areas were given higher numerical ranks than areas within the ranges of species but without a documented problem. The Maximum Rank is simply the highest of the other two ranks. Rankings updated in January 2018.
Copyright Text: WSDOT ESO Fish and Wildlife Program