A bridge of life where appearance and function coexist
Animal overpass, Germany
If you like to travel by car, you will most likely have the experience of stopping cars and other wild animals crossing the road, and you may even see the carcasses of animals that have been killed on the road.
At this time, we can't help but imagine that if people and animals could go their separate ways, "the beast car diverted", wouldn't everyone be happy?
This month, on Highway 101 in Los Angeles, USA, a safe passage for animals to pass through officially began, marking a historic moment.
Renderings of the Los Angeles Wildlife Overpass design
Nearly 10 years in the making, the world's largest wildlife overpass, at a cost of $87 million (about 580 million yuan), is expected to be completed in 2025.
Some have questioned whether it is worth the effort to cross the street for animals, but local residents are looking forward to the completion of the overpass.
Driving along the endless highway, mountain lions hover above your head. Between human beings and nature, we have finally found a mode of getting along without interfering with each other.
01
Plant trees, reduce noise, build fences
broke hearts for animals crossing the street
The overpass, known as Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing, is located in northwest Los Angeles and spans 10 lanes of Highway 101.
It's one of the busiest stretches of the road in California, with about 300,000 cars passing by every day. It is also a classic self-driving tour of the West Coast of the United States, which can take you all the way from Los Angeles to Washington State.
Building the bridge here is obviously a huge project, the whole bridge is 61 meters long and 50 meters wide, and the scale is unprecedented.
To keep wildlife safe, the bridge is covered with dense vegetation, home to native species from the area, such as oak and willow.
There were even soil scientists and mycologists on the design team, collecting samples from nearby and making the overpass as seamless as possible into its surroundings.
That alone is not enough. Since both the headlights and whistles frighten the animals, the overpass uses light guide plates and soundproof walls to distract the dazzling light of the headlights and reduce vehicle noise.
There is also a 3.6-meter-high fence on the bridge, which brings together various animals. From skunks, squirrels, and lizards to mountain lions and moose, this passage can be used.
Safety nets were installed on both sides to prevent animals from accidentally falling off the bridge.
Therefore, the wildlife overpass is not just an ordinary bridge. For animals to be willing to go down this path, a series of elaborate and intricate designs are required.
It is conceivable that its requirements for funds are not low. As of last week, the project had received donations from more than 5,000 celebrities, foundations, institutions and businesses around the world, up to London.
On the day of construction, many environmentalists came to attend the groundbreaking ceremony.
California's minister of natural resources called the bridge "incredible." "Decades later, when we look back on history, we realize that this project ushered in a new era of reconnecting with nature."
02
26 mountain lions died under the wheels
The only ones who survive are inbreeding
While some complain that the project cost too much, much data suggests that it is urgent to build a passage dedicated to animals.
In the United States, there are more than 1 million car accidents involving wildlife each year, causing more than $8 billion in damage.
The area where Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing is located is particularly severe. Biologists began studying mountain lions here in 2002, and since then, at least 26 lions have died from crossing the street when hit by a vehicle.
Just the day before the overpass began, a cougar had just died under the rolling wheels of Route 405.
Busy Highway 101
Over time, fewer and fewer animals are crossing the road by mistake. But instead, a more intractable problem arises.
Animals that were originally in the same territory were completely separated by the road in two worlds, and the range of activity was directly cut in half.
Mountain lions, already small in numbers, began to breed in close inbreeding, and genetic diversity was getting lower and lower. Scientists predict that the species has a 16 to 28 percent chance of becoming extinct within the next 50 years.
In 2012, a 3-year-old cougar was spotted in Griffith Park near Hollywood and named it P22. Since then, the focus on the plight of this population has been pushed to a climax.
With a range of only 20 square kilometers, P22 is the smallest known mountain lion. Typically, a male mountain lion requires 400 square kilometers of territory.
People called it "Brad Pitt of Mountain Lions"—charming, mysterious, and romantically unfortunate—because there was no hope of finding any lioness mate in its territory.
It has bitten a koala in the zoo and accidentally eaten rodenticide. Although he often ran into trouble, he also became a local Internet celebrity, had his own social network account, and attracted a large number of fans.
03
The whole world is building bridges for animals
Roads affect animal activity and are a problem all over the world.
As early as the 1950s, France built the first animal bridge in history. Since then, the concept has become popular in Europe and the United States.
Animal overpasses in Germany
Animal passages in Finland
Animal Bridge, Montana, USA
The Netherlands has 600 passageways dedicated to animals, protecting badgers, elk and other mammals.
Among them, Natuurbrug Zanderij Crailoo is the longest animal bridge in the world, with a total of 800 meters, running through highways, railways and golf courses.
The animal overpass in Banff National Park, Canada, can also be seen walking by bears and wolves.
In addition to the bridges on the road, there are also passages built under the ground and among the trees.
Take, for example, the Elephant Underground Passage in Kenya.
Blue Penguin Underpass in New Zealand.
There is also the Little Squirrel Bridge in Washington, D.C.
These bridges of life not only save tens of millions of lives, but also provide a model for how humans can coexist with wild animals.
Text, Editor/Strawberry
The image comes from the Internet, if there is infringement, please contact to delete
The above content is from "The Bund TheBund" (WeChat: the-bund)
Lawyers have been authorized to pursue and protect the copyright of articles.
Welcome to share, leave a message to communicate. Please indicate the source of the reprint.