Zero roadkill as Amazon canopy bridges secure 15,000 crossings(news.mongabay.com)
362 points by hn_acker 3 days ago | 105 comments
tl;dr: Brazil's Projeto Reconecta installed 8 rope canopy bridges over a highway near Alta Floresta in the Amazon, and camera traps recorded 15,000 safe crossings by arboreal wildlife over 15 months with zero roadkill. The multilayer design accommodates different primate locomotion styles and has been adopted by Brazil's National Department of Transport Infrastructure as the recommended standard for highways. The project is expanding to other Brazilian biomes and Suriname, addressing the estimated 9 million mammals killed annually on Brazilian roads.
HN Discussion:
  • Praise for Mongabay as an underappreciated environmental journalism source
  • Similar wildlife crossing projects exist and work well in other countries
  • Idealistic enthusiasm for humans looking out for wildlife
  • ~Concerns about long-term maintenance and suggestion to use living bridges like India's root bridges
  • Confusion/humor about 'Amazon' referring to the rainforest rather than the company