Digests Landscape Desert - Conservation Corridor

Desert

Desert ecosystems may appear vast and open, but many species depend on connected habitat patches and intact movement corridors to track scarce water, seasonal resources, and suitable climate conditions. Maintaining connectivity across desert landscapes is essential for supporting biodiversity and enabling species to adapt to increasing development and climate stress.

Connectivity matters during climate extremes

Heather Cayton2026-09-28T10:14:44-04:00July 21st, 2025|

Extreme snowfall in Wyoming forced pronghorn to make long-distance escape movements, but encounters with fences and highways significantly increased mortality, highlighting the need for connectivity planning beyond seasonal migrations.

Conservation and connectivity across the border wall

Heather Cayton2024-02-23T10:21:53-05:00November 26th, 2018|

Construction of the wall along the U.S.-Mexico border has the potential to alter landscape connectivity for many species, as a recent analysis shows.

Wind energy infrastructure may funnel wildlife movement

Jacquelyn Fitzgerald2026-02-18T10:14:32-05:00March 26th, 2018|

Camera traps at desert tortoise burrows in southern California show that wind energy facilities influence the behavior of mammalian predators and their prey.

Landscape	Title	Year	Journal	Digest
Desert	Pronghorn movements and mortality during extreme weather highlight the critical importance of connectivity	2025	Current Biology	Connectivity matters during climate extremes
Freshwater, Wetland, Grassland, Desert	Using landscape connectivity to predict human-wildlife conflict	2020	Biological Conservation	Using landscape connectivity to predict human-wildlife conflict
Mountain, Forest, Desert, Grassland	Habitat suitability and connectivity for an endangered brown bear population in the Iranian Caucasus	2018	Wildlife Research	NA
Desert, Mountain	Making habitat connectivity a reality	2018	Conservation Biology	Suggestions for turning habitat connectivity on paper into reality
Desert	Multispecies assessment of core areas and connectivity of desert carnivores in central Iran	2018	Diversity and Distributions	Corridors in Asia: recent case studies
Mountain, Grassland, Desert	Road expansion: A challenge to conservation of mammals, with particular emphasis on the endangered Asiatic cheetah in Iran	2018	Journal for Nature Conservation	Road ecology: recent research into getting wildlife over and under transportation barriers
Desert, Forest, Grassland, Wetland	Nature divided, scientists united: US–Mexico border wall threatens biodiversity and binational conservation	2018	BioScience	Conservation and connectivity across the border wall
Desert	Mammalian mesocarnivore visitation at tortoise burrows in a wind farm	2017	Journal of Wildlife Management	Wind energy infrastructure may funnel wildlife movement
Desert	Using nested connectivity models to resolve management conflicts of isolated water networks in the Sonoran Desert	2017	Ecosphere	NA
Freshwater, Agriculture, Desert, Mountain, Grassland	"Restoration economy" strives to protect pollinators, create jobs	2016	Scientific American	People both create and benefit from the ecosystem services corridors provide
Desert, Grassland, Urban	All roads lead to Iran: Predicting landscape connectivity of the last stronghold for the critically endangered Asiatic cheetah	2016	Animal Conservation	NA
Mountain, Desert, Forest	Case studies of conservation plans that incorporate geodiversity	2015	Conservation Biology	Conserving – and connecting – nature’s stage
Desert	Developing fencing policies for dryland ecosystems	2015	Journal of Applied Ecology	Wildlife fencing: how effective is it for conservation?
Desert	A new model of landscape-scale fire connectivity applied to resource and fire management in the Sonoran Desert, USA	2015	Ecological Applications	The use of circuit theory to model fire connectivity and effects in the Sonoran Desert
Desert	Using network theory to prioritize management in a desert bighorn sheep metapopulation	2014	Landscape Ecology	Using network theory to prioritize management
Desert, Freshwater	Identifying optimal barriers to halt the invasion of cane toads Rhinella marina in arid Australia	2013	Journal of Applied Ecology	Halting invasive species along a sensitive corridor
Desert	Placing linkages among fragmented habitats: Do least-cost models reflect how animals use landscapes?	2011	Journal of Applied Ecology	NA

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Map of Digests

Where is connectivity research happening near you?

Search our interactive map for hundreds of research summaries on connectivity and corridors, covering over three decades of publications.

State	Year	Policy	Description
New Hampshire	2026	SB592	Enables regional, conservation, and energy resource planning for habitat strongholds and wildlife corridors
New Hampshire	2019	SB200	Requires the New Hampshire Department of Transportation to consider fish and wildlife crossings and mitigation measures in all future road and culvert projects
New Hampshire	2016	SB376	Requires the fish and game department to identify existing and needed wildlife corridors connecting wildlife habitats in the state and to make recommendations for legislative changes

State	Year	Policy	Description
Maine	2023	LD258	Appropriates $7.5 million to Department of Transportation to improve roadways with potential adaptations for wildlife
Maine	2023	LD1881	Establishes compensation fee program relating to fish and wildlife habitats and associated corridors, including compensation paid by solar energy development
Maine	2023	LD508	Requires Department of Environmental Protection to review its permitting laws concerning climate change, habitat connectivity, ecological resilience, and coastal environments

State	Year	Policy	Description
New Jersey	2025	S3618	Directs state agencies to develop a Wildlife Corridor Action Plan
New Jersey	2024	S3916/A5486	Expands eligibility for existing wildlife fencing programs by including farmers leasing farmland
New Jersey	2007	NJAC7:13	Requires the state to incorporate wildlife crossings or a natural bank for terrestrial threatened and endangered species and/or species of concern when a new bridge or culvert project would cause habitat fragmentation

State	Year	Policy	Description
New Mexico	2023	SB72	Appropriates money to new Wildlife Corridors Fund for implementation of wildlife crossing projects under New Mexico Wildlife Corridor Action Plan
New Mexico	2022	HB 2	Allocates funding for projects to reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions and allows the Department of Transportation and Department of Game to implement their Wildlife Corridors Action Plan
New Mexico	2019	SB 228	Requires the creation of a Wildlife Corridor Action Plan that includes comprehensive guidance to agencies for identifying, prioritizing and maintaining important areas for wildlife movement

State	Year	Policy	Description
Washington	2023	HB1216/SB5196	Requires Department of Ecology to prepare environmental impact statements for clean energy projects that consider impacts to habitat connectivity and wildlife migration corridors
Washington	2022	SB5689	Provides funding for US 97 Wildlife Crossing Improvements project
Washington	2019	SEO 1031.02	Recognizes the effect of roadways in creating barriers to wildlife movement, breeding, and migrations; the Washington State Department of Transportation will promote and support Practical Solutions and Planning and Environmental Linkages to integrate habitat connectivity and biodiversity plans; will make use of the highway prioritization map known as Habitat Connectivity Investment Priorities; and will corporate and coordinate with other agencies involved in wildlife habitat protection, specifically along highways

Connecting Science to Conservation

Desert

Connectivity matters during climate extremes

Conservation and connectivity across the border wall

Wind energy infrastructure may funnel wildlife movement

Search available publications by classification:

State	Year	Policy	Description
Vermont	2023	Act59	Vermont's 30x30 law that commits to conserving and maintaining an ecologically functional landscape that sustains biodiversity and maintains landscape connectivity
Vermont	2016	Act 171	Primarily focuses on timber harvesting regulations, but calls for a study of necessary revisions to planning statutes that protect contiguous areas of forestland from fragmentation and promote habitat connectivity between forestlands

State	Year	Policy	Description
Florida	2024	SB1638	Dedicates annual funding to land purchases, conservation easements, and trail maintenance within Florida Wildlife Corridor
Florida	2023	HB1379	Creates annual appropriation to acquire lands that complete certain linkages and are under high population stress within Florida Wildlife Corridor
Florida	2023	SB2500 sec.146	Provides funding to buy Ocala to Osceola (“O2O”) Wildlife Corridor
Florida	2021	SB976	Tasks state agencies with maintaining wildlife connectivity and designates Florida Wildlife Corridor as an existing physical, geographically defined area
Florida	2021	SB2500	Appropriates $300 million to acquire lands to conserve Florida Wildlife Corridor
Florida	2019	SB7068	Creates a "Multi-use Corridors of Regional Economic Significance Program" that includes protection of wildlife corridors as an intended benefit
Florida	2008	SB542	Amends Florida Forever Act statues to include goals of connecting linkage corridors
Florida	2001	SB1468	Amends Florida Forever Act to establish that land acquisitions should include complete landscape linkages and corridors
Florida	1999	S908	Creates Florida Forever Program, with increased protection of lands that protect threatened or endangered species and plans to create a statewide system of connected landscape linkages