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County wildlife planner briefs commissioners on mapped wildlife corridors and wildlife-friendly fencing recommendations
Summary
Jessica Simmons, county wildlife planner, gave an educational presentation Sept. 24 on wildlife corridors, connectivity risks from roads and fencing, and practical design recommendations such as 42-inch maximum fence height and minimum wire spacings to reduce entanglement.
County wildlife planner Jessica Simmons briefed the Planning and Zoning Commission on wildlife corridors, connectivity risks and wildlife-friendly fencing during the Sept. 24 study session.
Simmons described the ecological importance of connected habitat for daily, seasonal and life-stage movements and explained how fragmentation — for example, highways or fences — can reduce gene flow, isolate populations and increase human-wildlife conflict. She showed maps derived from Arizona Game and Fish (the environmental review tool) that identify movement corridors in the Flagstaff region and discussed collar data showing pronghorn avoidance of highways.
Simmons recommended wildlife-friendly fencing specifications that county staff have used in project conditions: maximum fence height of 42 inches, a larger gap under the lowest wire to allow pronghorn and young animals to pass below, and at least 12 inches between the lowest and second-lowest wires to reduce leg entrapment. She noted fencing can exclude livestock while still allowing wildlife to cross if designed to these specifications.
Commissioners asked whether federal agencies such as the U.S. Forest Service use wildlife-friendly fencing; Simmons said she had not discussed that directly with Forest Service staff but that she frequently sees wildlife-unfriendly barbed-wire fences on national-forest boundaries.
Simmons pointed commissioners to Arizona Game and Fish's Environmental Review Tool interactive map for corridor locations and habitat modeling, and urged the commission to consider mapped corridors when reviewing land‑use proposals. The presentation concluded with examples of wildlife overpasses and underpasses used in other jurisdictions to maintain connectivity across highways.
Commissioners thanked Simmons and several said they would consult her on future cases where mapped corridors or fencing design could affect permit conditions.
