The Influence of Human Disturbance on Wildlife Use of a Highway in South Texas

Author

Thomas J. Yamashita, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley

Date of Award

7-2020

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Agricultural, Environmental, and Sustainability Sciences

First Advisor

Dr. Richard Kline

Second Advisor

Dr. Christopher Gabler

Third Advisor

Dr. John Young Jr.

Abstract

Roads can greatly impact wildlife. Wildlife vehicle collisions contribute to population declines while disturbance from human activity may prevent wildlife from using areas around roads. The construction of mitigation structures may lessen these effects through fine scale modification of animal use of roadside areas. In this thesis, how the construction of wildlife mitigation structures impacted the fine scale distribution of wildlife on State Highway 100 in Cameron County, Texas was examined. Spatial and temporal scale may also influence these relationships. The relationship between human activity and wildlife activity around the highway was explored and how the distribution of wildlife road mortalities changed with construction was assessed. Wildlife used areas along the road primarily at night and areas around roads during the day. Additionally, road mortality distribution did not change after the construction of mitigation structures. Therefore, human disturbance seems to have impacted temporal activity but not spatial activity of wildlife.

Comments

Copyright 2020 Thomas J. Yamashita. All Rights Reserved.

https://go.openathens.net/redirector/utrgv.edu?url=https://www.proquest.com/dissertations-theses/influence-human-disturbance-on-wildlife-use/docview/2478769330/se-2?accountid=7119

Recommended Citation

Yamashita, Thomas J., "The Influence of Human Disturbance on Wildlife Use of a Highway in South Texas" (2020). Theses and Dissertations. 538.
https://scholarworks.utrgv.edu/etd/538