Miller Library

Includes bibliographical references (pages [307]-350) and index.

Introduction: The wing of the swallow -- Killer on the road. And now the devil-wagon! ; The moving fence ; Hotel California ; In cold blood -- More than a road. Roads unmade ; The blab of the pave ; Life on the verge ; The necrobiome ; The lost frontier -- The roads ahead. The graciousness at the heart of creation ; Sentinel roads ; The tsunami ; Reparations -- Epilogue: The anthropause.

"An eye-opening and witty account of the global ecological transformations wrought by roads, from an award-winning author. Some 40 million miles of roadways encircle the earth, but we tend to regard them only as infrastructure for human convenience. In Crossings, Ben Goldfarb delves into the new science of road ecology to explore how roads have transformed our world. Millions of animals are killed by cars each day in the US alone, and roads fragment wildlife populations into inbred clusters, disrupt migration for creatures from antelope to salmon, allow invasive plants to spread and even bend the arc of evolution itself. But road ecologists are also seeking innovative solutions: Goldfarb meets with conservationists building bridges for mountain lions and tunnels for toads, engineers deconstructing logging roads, and citizens working to undo the havoc highways have wreaked upon cities. A sweeping, spirited and timely investigation into how humans have altered the natural world, Crossings also shows us how to create a better future for all living beings" -- Provided by publisher.