Biology Technical Note No. 93 – Improving Fence Passage for Migratory Big Game: Examples and Lessons Learned From Wyoming’s Migratory Big Game Partnership

Abstract

Fences are a pervasive feature of western working landscapes and a useful management tool, but they also have serious potential to impact wildlife, with some acting as movement barriers and others causing injury or even death. Fences are of particular concern for migratory populations of big game in the western United States, where herds often move hundreds of miles between seasonal ranges. This technical note is intended for NRCS conservation planners and partners working with agricultural producers and public land managers to facilitate migratory big game movements. It draws upon the existing body of science and expertise of Wyoming partners engaged in this work for over a decade to share the best available information with others across the West. The note supplements the NRCS National Planning Procedures Handbook, providing details throughout the conservation planning process on removing, modifying, or building fences when migratory big game is a resource concern. The note covers a variety of topics from inventory to monitoring and presents design alternatives from avoiding fence impacts altogether to minimizing and mitigating impacts through “wildlife-friendlier” fence options.