From Effects of Linear Transport Infrastructures on Amphibians to Mitigation Measures

Abstract

Linear transport infrastructures (e.g., roads, highways, railways) are affecting biodiver - sity by habitat loss and fragmentation, degraded or suppressed connectivity, and direct and indirect mortality. In response, planners try to propose mitigation or compensatory measures. Amphibians are particularly impacted by these infrastructures, in terms of habitat loss but also because their obligatory migration to breeding sites exposed them to the barrier effect of infrastructure (direct mortality and loss of connection among sub-populations). Several compensatory (e.g., creation of new ponds) and mitigation mea - sures (construction of wildlife passage) have been proposed specifically for amphibians. This chapter aims to describe measures implemented for amphibian populations and tries to evaluate their efficiency in terms of frequentation (wildlife passage) and popula tion persistence.