Durban - Roads have a devastating impact on wildlife, but the extent to which they pose a threat to genetic diversity and the natural movement of species is not well understood in Africa.
These were some of the points that emerged on the first day of discussions at the International Wildlife Management Congress in Durban yesterday.
Contributing to discussions on sustainable road management, protection group Monkey Helpline noted that they collected up to 500 monkeys on Durban’s roads in a year.
“And it isn’t just monkeys. Just recently we stumbled upon the body of a caracal that had been run over,” said Carol Booth, co-ordinator of the organisation.
Booth said in some areas, on the road to the airport, for example, where monkeys occur-red naturally, the animals were being mowed down in troops.
Daniel Smith, a research scientist at the department of biology at the University of Central Florida, told the congress that the building of roads always had direct and indirect impacts on wildlife.
“They are not just killed as a result of motor vehicles, but they also adjust their movement and breeding behaviours, which affects the health of the population,” he said.
Genetic diversity could also be reduced.
“Even what we would consider a small adjustment, such as widening a road, could have huge implications for animals who are used to negotiating a particular road width,” he said.
A problem in Africa, said Claire Patterson-Abrolat, programme manager of the Airport Wildlife Programme of the Endangered Wildlife Trust, was that there was very little data on Africa’s roads, in terms of density and networks.
This was one reason it was difficult to co-ordinate efforts in different countries.
The workshop participants identified a few major universal issues with regard to roads, including: economic constraints, public resistance and apathy; lack of knowledge of the extent of the problem; a lack of ecological input in planning; and minimal co-operation between sectors.
The congress continues tomorrow.