Case Studies in Earth & Environmental Science Journalism

Wildlife Corridors

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  • Scientific & Technical Papers
  • Popular Articles
  • Optional Article of Interest

Questions to Ponder and Discuss

• What are the different ways wildlife corridors are defined? What are the dangers associated with habitat loss and fragmentation?

• Why are ecologists split over the usefulness of wildlife corridors?

• Why is it difficult to test that wildlife corridors work? What are some of the differences and similarities between various observational studies of corridors? Why is there no direct answer to the question of whether or not habitat corridors provide connectivity?

• Hess 1994 established some limitations to the effectiveness of wildlife corridors in conservation strategies, saying that connectivity could enhance transmission of contagious diseases. Could disease risks be minor compared to the loss of genetic diversity? How would you weigh the benefits with the risks of connecting isolated habitats? What are the trade-offs?

• Levey and Haddad were authors of both the longleaf pine study as well as the bluebird study. How are the two approaches different or similar? How might lessons learned from research on plant and bird species be applied to other wildlife? Does Cornelia Dean do an adequate job of conveying the science of corridors in the September 5, 2006 New York Times article?

• What are the controversies over the Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative and how do the different articles portray that? Which articles present both points of view? Which articles are biased towards only one view? In what other ways are the Y2Y articles different from each other?

• Do popular articles discuss the science behind corridors? Which ones do a good job of conveying the scientific uncertainty?

• If you were the author of a popular article on corridors, beyond maps, how might you utilize visuals? 

• How does the Discover article use a unique opening to describe the need for wildlife corridors?

• How do the different articles characterize the conflict between developers, property-owners, local policy-makers, and environmental groups?

• Compare the San Francisco Chronicle 2006, Toronto Star 2005, and E Magazine 1999 articles. When discussing the interactions between human and wildlife, how do their tones differ?

• The popular press covers an array of wildlife within a range of landscapes, from amphibians to jaguars, from mountains to forests. How are they treated differently?

• Is there a disparity between the published scientific studies on habitat corridors and the way they are covered by the media? How might you account for this disconnect?

Readings

Background information:

Anderson, Anthony B. & Jenkins, Clinton N. 2006. Introduction to Applying Nature’s Design: Corridors as a Strategy for Biodiversity Conservation, Columbia University Press, New York, New York, pp.1-6.

Bennett, Andrew F. 2003. “Corridors, stepping stones and other habitat configurations to enhance connectivity” (pp.49-57) in Linkages in the Landscape: The Role of Corridors and Connectivity in Wildlife Conservation. IUCN – The World Conservation Union’s Forest Conservation Programme.

McKenzie, Evan. 1995. “Important Criteria and Parameters of Wildlife Movement Corridors – A Partial Literature Review.” Silva Forest Foundation. February, 1995.

“The Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative” and “Grizzly Bears in the Yellowstone to Yukon Ecoregion” from http://www.y2y.net. Accessed on November 16, 2006.

Beier, Paul and Noss, Reed F. 1998. “Do Habitat Corridors Provide Connectivity?” Review, Conservation Biology 12:1241-1252.

Scientific & Technical Information.

Damschen, Ellen I., Haddad, Nick M., Orrock, John L., Tewksbury, Joshua J., & Levey, Douglas J. 2006. “Corridors Increase Plant Species Richness at Large Scales.” Science 313:284-286.

Levey, Douglas J., Bolker, Benjamin M., Tewksbury, Sarah S., Haddad, Nick M. “Effects of Landscape Corridors on Seed Dispersal by Birds.” Science 309:146-148.

Hess, George R. 1994. “Conservation Corridors and Contagious Disease: A Cautionary Note.” Conservation Biology 8:256-262.

Summary Report “Y2Y Science Advisory Forum” from http://www.y2y.net. November 19-21, 1999.

Popular Articles.

King, Patricia. 1997. “An Animal Superhighway?” Newsweek, July 28, 1997.

Rembert, Tracey C. 1999. “High Noon at Grizzly Gulch.” E/The Environmental Magazine, January/February, 1999. 

Mcmillion, Scott. 1999. “Church lands will help bail out bison” and “Bison may get ground to stand on.” High Country News, March 15, 1999.

Chadwick, Douglas H. 2001. “Phantom of the Night.” National Geographic. May 2001. 

Kaiser, Jocelyn. 2001. “Bold Corridor Project Confronts Political Reality.” Science News pp.2196-2199, September 21, 2001.

Royte, Elizabeth. 2002. “Wilding America.” Discover, September 2002.

Transcript of “Habitat Corridors,” interview with Jim Peck. 2003. Focus West, September 3, 2003. 

Wunder, Sue. 2004. “Making bridges for animals.” Christian Science Monitor, October 5, 2004.

Johnson, Kirk. 2004. “For Wildlife With Wanderlust, Their Own Highway.” The New York Times, December 2, 2004.

Zimmer, Josh. 2005. “Wildlife corridor plan fades away.” St. Petersburg Times, February 27, 2005.

National Report. 2005. “Living life on the wild side.” The Toronto Star, August 27, 2005.

West, Debra. 2006. “This Land is Zoned Amphibian.” The New York Times, January 15, 2006.

Dean, Cornelia. 2006. “Home on the Range: A Corridor for Wildlife.” The New York Times, May 23, 2006.

Dean, Cornelia. 2006. “Research Shows That Plants Like a Path to Biodiversity.” The New York Times. September 5, 2006. 

“We should take this chance to help the animals.” Editorial, The Alberquerque Tribune. October, 30, 2006.

George, Jerry. 2006. “Who put out a wildlife welcome mat? We did, with more deer and trees in towns.” TheSan Francisco Chronicle, November 11, 2006.

Optional Article of Interest

Sanderson, Eric W. et al. 2002. “The Human Footprint and the Last of the Wild.” BioScience 52:891-904.

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