Effects of building a highway and wildlife crossings in a red deer (Cervus elaphus) habitat in Hungary

Abstract

We examined how the movement of red deer (Cervus elaphus) was modified in an area that had a new fenced off highway built across it. The first step was the collection of data from the track marked for construction. We continued collecting data on wildlife crossings after the construction of the highway and the completion of the fences. After the completion of the highway, it was observed that only 5.9% of the original deer track counts remained, spread across the crossings. After the construction was finished, the wider crossing structures were used more often by deer for crossing to the other side of the highway than the smaller ones. During construction of the highway, a number of animals chose to walk tens of kilometres to get around the construction site instead of using the crossings. An existing highway, or a highway under construction not only changes the frequency of deer crossings, but affects their distribution as well.