Landscape Connectivity and Wildlife Access to Water Across an International Border: Barriers and Opportunities for Facilitating Transboundary Movement

Authors

• Bogdan Chivoiu
• Erin L. Koen
• Michael J. Osland
• Christopher A. Gabler, The University of Texas Rio Grande ValleyFollow
• Jerald T. Garrett, The University of Texas Rio Grande ValleyFollow
• Ernesto Reyes, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
• Stephanie A. Bilodeau, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
• Mitch A. Sternberg, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
• Jude A. Benavides, The University of Texas Rio Grande ValleyFollow
• James Martinez, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

5-2026

Abstract

Rapid global acceleration in the construction of physical barriers along international borders has greatly influenced biodiversity and animal movement. Physical barriers can fragment landscapes, hinder access to essential resources, impact long-distance migrations, and inhibit dispersal and gene flow. The effects of physical barriers on animal movement and landscape connectivity can be exacerbated in dryland environments where access to water is a limiting factor. In recent decades, the construction of border barrier infrastructure has accelerated along the international boundary between the United States and Mexico. Here, we used a landscape connectivity model to investigate the effects of barriers on wildlife access to the river in the Lower Rio Grande Valley. We used a modified omnidirectional connectivity model to compare access to the river for three large, terrestrial mammal species across three border barrier scenarios: (1) a landscape without border barriers; (2) a landscape with the existing barrier system; and (3) a potential future landscape with a continuous barrier system. The existing barrier system includes many discrete sections of barrier within tracts of the Lower Rio Grande Valley National Wildlife Refuge or on lands associated with the region's flood control system. Our results indicate that the existing border barriers can impede connectivity and wildlife access to the river in some areas, while some existing gaps between border barrier sections can serve as conduits for wildlife movement and river access. Our future scenario results show how a potential continuous border barrier system could further impede wildlife access to the river. We discuss management and landscape conservation options for enhancing wildlife access to water and riverine habitats. Collectively, our results illustrate the potential effects of border barriers on wildlife movement and access to water, providing information that can be used to better anticipate and lessen the ecological impacts of transboundary barriers.

Comments

© 2026 The Author(s). Global Change Biology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. This article has been contributed to by U.S. Government employees and their work is in the public domain in the USA.

This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License, which permits use and distribution in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, the use is non-commercial and no modifications or adaptations are made.

Recommended Citation

Chivoiu, Bogdan, Erin L. Koen, Michael J. Osland, Christopher A. Gabler, Jerald T. Garrett, Ernesto Reyes, Stephanie A. Bilodeau et al. "Landscape Connectivity and Wildlife Access to Water Across an International Border: Barriers and Opportunities for Facilitating Transboundary Movement." Global Change Biology 32, no. 5 (2026): e70888. https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.70888

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.

Publication Title

Global Change Biology

DOI

10.1111/gcb.70888