🤯 Did You Know (click to read)
Road networks are recognized globally as significant drivers of wildlife habitat fragmentation.
Road construction associated with logging and development increases human penetration into previously remote forests. For the Sunda clouded leopard, roads fragment habitat and facilitate poaching access. Even narrow roads create open corridors that disrupt canopy continuity. Vehicle traffic introduces noise and disturbance into otherwise quiet ecosystems. Road networks often expand incrementally, multiplying fragmentation effects. Increased accessibility also accelerates illegal wildlife trade risks. Infrastructure therefore compounds habitat loss. A road is not just a line on a map but a structural break in forest ecology.
💥 Impact (click to read)
Once established, roads enable secondary clearing and settlement expansion. The predator may avoid open roadways, further reducing usable territory. Mortality risk increases from vehicle collisions and human encounters. Linear fragmentation differs from natural barriers because it spreads rapidly.
Strategic planning that limits unnecessary road expansion can reduce cumulative damage. Decommissioning unused logging roads helps restore canopy connectivity. The Sunda clouded leopard’s survival depends on controlling infrastructure sprawl within its confined range.
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