Wildlife & Traffic
A European Handbook for Identifying Conflicts and Designing Solutions
Contents
- 10.1 Introduction
- 10.2 Developing an adaptive ecological asset maintenance plan
- 10.3. Maintenance requirements for ecological asset and wildlife management
- 10.4 Maintenance tasks sheets
- Maintenance of fencing: meshes and poles
- Maintenance of fencing: escape devices
- Maintenance of cattle grids
- Maintenance of screens installed to reduce disturbances
- Maintenance of amphibian/small fauna fences
- Maintenance of ecoducts, wildlife and multiuse overpasses
- Maintenance of viaducts, wildlife and multiuse underpasses
- Maintenance of modified culverts
- Maintenance of amphibian tunnels
- Maintenance of wildlife awareness signs
- Maintenance of signs activated by Animal Detection Systems (ADS)
- Management of vegetation
- Management of habitats for pollinators and other small fauna
- Control of Invasive Alien Species (IAS)
- Management of verges to reduce forest fire risk in sensitive areas
- Management of retention ponds to wildlife
- Management of road killed animals
- Management of Animal-Vehicle Collisions (AVC) data
- 10.5 References
- Appendix 1
- Appendix 2
Maintenance of amphibian tunnels

INSPECTION TASKS
To check
- Materials are in good condition.
- Appropriate drainage is provided to prevent flooding.
- Fences are correctly anchored to the entrances and the fence ends are L or U-shaped away from the road to prevent the amphibians from crossing on the road surface.
- Fences are appropriately fixed to the ground.
- Vegetation height, composition and patch design is consistent with the standards.
- No Invasive Alien Species are found.
- No debris or other objects pose obstacles or prevent the appropriate use of the wildlife crossing.

SPECIFIC MAINTENANCE TASKS
To do
- Structural features and uses
- Maintain or restore entrance areas to ensure these are free of obstacles to fauna movements and appropriately connected with the surrounding habitats.
- Modify any element of the drainage system that could be a trap for small animals (e.g. gullies located close to fences and passages, if animals are falling into the pits, ensure these have escape ramps which are accessible for fauna and unobstructed.
- Remove rocks and sand that could obstruct the amphibian tunnel.
- Fences and screens > see Sheet 5
- Replace broken or deformed parts of the fence.
- Reinforce the anchorage of the fence to the ground and amphibian tunnels when needed.
- Vegetation > see Sheet 12
- Undertake mowing, pruning and other vegetation management according to standards provided.
- Remove vegetation debris that could obstruct the tunnel entrance.
- Remove any Invasive Alien Species found.
- Maintain any refuges near the fences and tunnels, according to the maintenance guidelines ensuring that they provide cover for the target species.
- If ponds are close to amphibian tunnels, ensure that water is not flooding the tunnel.

SCHEDULE
- Minimum: once a year, just before seasonal reproductive migrations or periods when target species movements are increased.
- Mowing and pruning vegetation should be scheduled according to local conditions.
- Additional inspections should be planned following floods, strong winds, snow or other adverse weather events.
Maintenance of ecological assets on transport linear infrastructure