Across the American West, a conflict has been quietly escalating for decades, leaving thousands of people injured and millions of animals dead. But the parties in this engagement aren’t out to harm each other; they’re mostly just trying to get where they’re going.
The conflict is between motorists and wildlife, especially big game such as elk, deer, moose, and pronghorn, and it’s playing out primarily on highways and the outskirts of suburban developments—places where the animals’ centuries-old migration routes have been obstructed or cut off by roads, buildings, fences, and other structures.
Now, however, a movement is afoot to preserve—and in some cases restore—wildlife migration corridors without sacrificing development, and to do so in ways that make travel safer for people and animals alike.