River Crossings: Effects on Wildlife in and Around the Fort
River When my family moved to Amherst, Massachusetts, I was
struck by how many streams and small rivers run through the
town. At first I focused on how great it was to have so much
nature right where people live, work, and go to school. The
waterways are beautiful, and they provide swimming, canoeing,
and fishing fun. Then I noticed how often the local roads cross
over the rivers and streams. Almost anywhere I might need to
go—school, a friend's house, the grocery store—involved crossing
over a stream or river, sometimes several times. I started to
wonder how good the mingling of waterways and roadways is for
the fish and other wildlife that live here. While it's
convenient for people to have these crossings, I had to ask
myself, do the crossings allow fish, turtles, salamanders, and
other animals to make their way safely along the waterways? I
decided to investigate this question by studying a local
waterway. But which one? For insight, I called the