Assessing Traffic Threats for Amphibian and Reptile Species of Greater Conservation Need on Texas Roadways

In Texas, there are 46 amphibian and reptile species of greatest conservation need (SGCN) identified by Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) that can be found crossing roads. Five of these species found on roads are being considered for listing under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), and an additional species has recently been designated as threatened. If listing any of these species is deemed warranted by U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), or if TPWD elevates the conservation status ranking of the 46 SGCN, then TxDOT may be required to engage in the appropriate mitigation efforts for that species in areas where traffic is identified as a threat. Without prior knowledge of which of these species and where these species could be affected by traffic, TxDOT will be in a reactive position rather than a proactive position on certain projects predicted to affect these species. This will delay project completion and increase project budgets. The objectives of this project are to create a road crossing database capable of mapping where the greatest frequency of road crossings occurs for all SGCN and by species (a series of "heat" maps) throughout Texas and to test whether traffic volumes in areas with frequent road crossings can explain the frequency of dead observations. This analysis will help determine the potential threat of traffic and location on SGCN populations throughout Texas.

• Record URL:
  https://library.ctr.utexas.edu/Presto/content/Detail.aspx?ctID=M2UxNzg5YmEtYzMyZS00ZjBlLWIyODctYzljMzQ3ZmVmOWFl&rID=NjI1&sID=MQ==&qrs=VHJ1ZQ==&q=KHJwLlJlY29yZFVwZGF0ZWQ9WzIwMTgwNTE4MDUwMDAwIFRPIDIwMTgxMTE1MDU1OTU5XSkgTk9UIChycC5wZXJtYWxpbms6KCopKQ==&rrtc=VHJ1ZQ==

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Active
• Funding: $87976
• Contract Numbers:

  0-6972

• Sponsor Organizations:

  Texas Department of Transportation

  125 E. 11th Street
  Austin, TX  United States  78701-2483
• Project Managers:

  Glancy, Chris

• Performing Organizations:

  Texas A&M Agrilife Research

  600 John Kimbrough Boulevard
  Suite 512
  College Station, TX  United States  77843
• Principal Investigators:

  Lopez, Roel

• Start Date: 20180606
• Expected Completion Date: 20190731
• Actual Completion Date: 0

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Amphibians; Animal behavior; Animal vehicle crashes; Road kill; Roadside fauna; Safety; Wildlife crossings
• Subject Areas: Environment;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01690700
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: Texas Department of Transportation
• Contract Numbers: 0-6972
• Files: RiP, STATEDOT
• Created Date: Jan 9 2019 1:34PM