Methods
This paper focuses on two aspects of a review on best practice for
reptile and amphibian fencing. Firstly, a review of available published
guidance was conducted. The search methods involved an online search for
published guidance on road mitigation that was either specifically for
reptiles and/or amphibians or included sections on reptiles and/or
amphibians and provided fencing recommendations. The search was
undertaken in English and included all countries. It is possible that
some non-English countries may have guidance that has not been included
in the review.
A total of twelve published reports were identified, which were included
in the review. From the reports, the following information was
extrapolated for comparison: general recommendations on reptile or
amphibian fencing, materials and/or fencing gauge, fencing heights per
species group (categorized as lizards, snakes, tortoises, turtles
(freshwater), salamanders and newts, toads, and frogs) and finally
additional recommendations such as inclusion of anti-dig installation or
a top-lip. The data extrapolated from these reports was combined to find
mean fencing heights by species group as well as any consistent
recommendations.
Further, in creating our recommendations for fencing, in addition to the
summaries of guidance documents above, we included recent relevant
research that has been carried out that may not have been included in
the fencing guidelines as well as our own professional observations.
Through Animex International, we supply, install and consult on fencing
for herpetofauna globally and have noted observations that have been
found in monitoring on existing projects. Although not all projects are
monitored for research purposes, observations on multiple projects can
help inform best practice and help identify future research needs.