Road mortality is one of the major threats to snakes of conservation concern, including the federally threatened louisiana pinesnake

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service awarded a $230,472 Formula Grant under the State Wildlife Grants (CFDA 15.634) program to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. The grant funding will support a 2-year project (01/01/2025 - 12/31/2026) to characterize the location and timing of road mortality for all snake species, including the federally threatened Louisiana pinesnake, at a candidate reintroduction site and two adjacent sites in Texas. The project aims to quantify the habitat, weather, and road characteristics that influence snake road mortality in order to inform effective mitigation strategies prior to pinesnake reintroduction efforts. As a sub-award under this grant, Texas A&M AgriLife Research will investigate the habitat features associated with snake road crossings within the Louisiana pinesnake habitat areas.

As reintroduction strategies continue to be adopted to assist recovery of this and similar snake species, mitigating road mortality at candidate reintroduction sites has become a high research priority. Here, we propose to (1) characterize the location and timing of road mortality for all snakes at the single candidate reintroduction site and two adjacent sites in texas (3 sites total) where historical road mortality of thelouisiana pinesnake has been documented, and (2) quantify the habitat, weather conditions, and road characteristics that best explain variation in location and timing of those road mortality events. By better understanding where, when, and why snake species are vulnerable to road mortality at and near this candidate reintroduction site, we can begin to identify the most effective strategies to mitigate road mortalityfor louisiana pinesnakes prior to reintroductions and thus increase the likelihood of recovery for the species in texas.