Planning Trails with Wildlife in Mind
Assessing the amount of human disturbance already along a potential trail alignment can help set more real- istic wildlife goals for a trail project. Trail alignments may pass through one or more of the general levels of modification along a gradient from urban to pristine.
It is very rare that an area proposed for a trail hasn’t already seen at least some impact from humans. The questions then become
With this kind of ecological evaluation, it will be easier to set reasonable wildlife goals for a trail or to evaluate the tradeoffs between wildlife and trails. Every trail project should have wildlife goals. The specific wildlife goals and rules of thumb you apply will partly depend on how disturbed a site is.
Typically, urban landscapes are heavily disturbed and restoring habitat may be the principal wildlife goal. In more pristine settings, preserving what is already there and minimizing impact may be the major concerns.
An important first step is determining where a site fits on the gradient of human modification ranging from urban (highly modified) to pristine (few modifications).
Even portions of wilderness areas may have had some human impacts from activities such as mining, forestry, or road building. Understanding these modifications can help guide trail alignments. For example, trails might follow ecological edges created by historic roads or timber cuts.
In gauging how modified an area already is, there are some practical questions to ask:
• Generally, what kind of wildlife habitat is present? What condition is it in?
• Are the plants and animals typically associated with that habitat actually present? Is the ecosystem already impoverished to some extent?
• What are and have been the human impacts to wildlife in the area?
• What are the surrounding land uses and condition of habitat? How close is any nearby develop- ment? Are there already roads bounding the area under consideration for a trail, posing obstacles to wildlife movement?
• Overall, to what extent is the site insulated from external forces?
• What opportunities are there to improve habitat on the site?
G.1 Patterns of disturbance.
The best trail alignments work with the existing patterns of disturbance already in a landscape, rather than imposing an entirely new set.
G.3 Urban limitations.
In urban landscapes there are often few options for routing trails other than streetside (where there are not many ecological implications) and along streams and other drainages often already transformed for flood control.
G.4 Restoring habitat. Trail projects can aid wildlife by being catalysts for restoring habitat, creating wetlands, and planting native plant species for food, cover, and visual screening.
G.5 Seeking professional help.
Without special training, it’s easy to overlook or oversimplify wildlife issues. Get professional assistance whenever possible.
[Older publications may be available from libraries and used booksellers. Titles with links may still be in print.]
Thorne, “Landscape Ecology,” in D. Smith and P. Hellmund, 1993. Ecology of Greenways. University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, Minn., p. 27.
Forman R. and M. Godron, 1986. Landscape Ecology. John Wiley and Sons, New York, pp. 286-310.
Published September 2018
Guidelines for Managing and Restoring Natural Plant Communities along Trails and Waterways
posted Sep 18, 2023
These guidelines are designed to assist resource managers in conducting management activities that enhance the quality of natural plant communities, wildlife habitat, regional landscape integrity and visual quality, particularly as related to planning, development, and maintenance of trails, water trails, and water access sites.
Sustaining Wildlife With Recreation on Public Lands
posted Jul 20, 2021
A Synthesis of Research Findings, Management Practices, and Research Needs
posted Jul 1, 2021
Horses have been suggested to be an important source for the introduction of non-native plant species along trails, but the conclusions were based on anecdotal evidence.
