Building wildlife corridors: a novel approach

A diagram showing how wildlife corridors connect tracks of open land.

By Paul Wieman

Wildlife corridors mean many different things to many different people, and, more importantly, to many different species.

For migrating birds, a wildlife corridor may consist of regularly spaced habitats along their flyway, allowing the birds a chance to feed and rest before continuing their journey. For mountain lions or ocelots, a wildlife corridor may be as small as an underpass, allowing the animal to cross an interstate that would otherwise prove deadly and perhaps put an entire local population at risk. And for other roaming species, such as elk or bison, a wildlife corridor may be a large connecting tract of land that allows a species to wander between two habitats, such as a national park and a wildlife refuge or national forest.

In short, a wildlife corridor is not a new concept, and those managing large tracts of land and large animal populations have worked on them for decades. However, here in northern Westchester, the Bedford Conservation Board is putting a new twist on this effort to offer wildlife and open spaces a sustainable future.

On a recent evening at the Katonah Village Library, 25 interested people gathered to hear Chris Nagy of Mianus River Gorge and Simon Skolnik of Bedford Conservation Board offer a joint talk, “Preserving Wildlife Corridors: A New Strategy for Protecting Bedford’s Open Space.” Having received a grant from the New York Department of Environmental Conservation three years ago to explore the idea of wildlife corridors, the conservation board hired Mianus River Gorge to create a detailed map of Bedford with the purpose of determining what tracts of land harbored significant animal life and how might these core areas be connected.

This is not necessarily about deer and raccoons.

“Those two are examples of animals that, other than crossing the highways and primary roads, can move pretty freely,” said Nagy. “A map of how white-tailed deer move across Bedford would basically be all one color, and not very useful. Other species live here but are more sensitive, and we need to identify and conserve corridors they use.” Therefore, the focus is on bobcats, flying squirrels, and native forest bats … suburban mammals that do not get about as easily and may need some help from their human neighbors.

Nagy described the benefits of thinking about land in this manner. Corridors provide many benefits for the animal population. Easier access to more mates diversifies the gene pool. If a local tract of land experiences a rapid population decline, the area can be repopulated more easily if a corridor links it to another core habitat. Additionally, if a food supply dwindles in one area, the entire population that relies on that food is at less risk if a corridor exists.

Central to this work, Nagy has created a highly detailed map of Bedford, focusing on open tracts of land and how best to connect them. Because of this work, the project has now reached the point where relevant and informed questions can be asked and discussed. Essentially, can corridors be established, maintained and protected that link various tracts of land, thereby benefiting suburban wildlife and protecting the very tracts of land that are being linked together?

“This map illustrates how we believe these species, based on what we know of their ecology and movement patterns, move through the town,” said Nagy. “And those species we think are good models for a whole suite of other species. None of the preserves or greenspaces — the Core Areas in the map — we have is large enough to support viable populations of most of our wildlife species on their own, so these areas need to be connected.”

Skolnik spoke of the history of the project, the receiving of the grant three years ago in fall 2022, and how the project has evolved over time. “The ultimate goal, and what we are required to do by receiving this grant from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation,” he said, “is to create a draft of a town ordinance that focuses on wildlife corridors which promotes the health of suburban wildlife and thereby sustaining our partnership with the animals that share our space.” Skolnik continued by noting that “it is important to understand that by creating and preserving wildlife corridors, you are also preserving open spaces.”

With the map now created, the conservation board is entering the second phase of the project, creating a draft of an ordinance regarding wildlife corridors and open spaces and, when completed, presenting this draft to the town this fall.

As part of this next phase, the conservation board is working closely with Ted Fink of Greenplan, a Hudson Valley firm devoted to helping towns plan for land management and sustainability.  Through Greenplan’s experience and expertise, the firm will help the board to ensure that the draft ordinance will exist in coordination with other ordinances and codes already in place in Bedford.

Moving forward, there will be public stakeholder meetings and coordination with adjacent towns as the ordinance takes shape and specific language emerges.

“Obviously, private property fencing is an issue we will have to address,” Skolnik said, “and road crossings may surface as a concern, but we are very open to hearing what other issues and ideas emerge as this process moves forward.” As the conservation board learns more about the specific concerns of property owners and other stakeholders, it will be better equipped to continue in a productive manner. “We are currently at the listening phase,” emphasized Skolnik.

Suburban wildlife does not exactly follow town borders, so any discussion of a real plan needs to include communication with adjacent towns, and that is also built into the second phase of this project. A quick look at Nagy’s map brings attention to how necessary it is to extend this project beyond the boundaries for Bedford.

If the conservation board succeeds at creating a draft ordinance for wildlife corridors for the town, then it is believed that Bedford will be the first town to have completed such a project, and perhaps this example will serve as a model for other towns and municipalities looking for sustainable plans to manage their open spaces and maintain their wildlife populations.