Wildlife corridor

A landscape feature that connects separated habitats and permits animals to move between them. Corridors can support dispersal, migration, access to resources, and gene flow between populations.

Landscape connectivity: The degree to which a landscape enables organisms to move among habitat patches. Wildlife corridors are deliberate features that improve movement across fragmented landscapes.
Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative: A conservation effort linking habitats from Yellowstone National Park to Canada's Yukon through a network of protected lands. It is a large-scale example of connecting habitats across jurisdictions.
Gene flow: The transfer of genetic variants between populations through the movement and reproduction of individuals. Movement through corridors can reduce genetic isolation between populations.
Climate change refugium: An area where environmental conditions allow a species to persist despite broader climate change. Corridors may link populations to refugia as suitable conditions shift.
Habitat fragmentation: The division of continuous habitat into smaller, more isolated patches. Fragmentation creates the barriers and isolation that corridors are designed to counter.
Mesoamerican Biological Corridor: A regional conservation network intended to connect protected areas across Central America and southern Mexico. Its scale shows how corridor planning can span national borders and varied land uses.
Genetic rescue: An increase in a small population's fitness after individuals from another population introduce new genetic variation. Corridors may enable the immigration that makes genetic rescue possible.
Climate corridor: A route that allows species to shift their ranges as climate conditions change. It applies corridor planning specifically to climate-driven range movement.
Least-cost path analysis: A method that identifies routes across a landscape by assigning movement costs to different areas. Planners use it to estimate routes animals may take between habitat patches.
Banff wildlife crossings: A system of overpasses and underpasses along the Trans-Canada Highway in Banff National Park. The crossings help maintain animal movement through a major transportation barrier.

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