Be Kind to Wildlife

Always a good idea to remind outdoor recreation enthusiasts to be kind to wildlife

Sustainable vs. Social Trails: Why You Should Ignore Psychology and Take the Road Most Traveled

Imagine a different interpretation of Robert Frost’s famous poem The Road Not Taken — a less romantic, more clear-cut version. The subject, instead of a young man beset by the decision of which direction to take in life, is simply a hiker tempted by the prospect of a spectacular view or befuddled by poor trail markings. The first trail is part of an established trail system; the second “less traveled” one, an informal trail created over time by lost or overly curious hikers.

The name given to informal trails created by erosion from human foot traffic, social trails have led even the most environmentally or conservation-minded among us astray — when the prospect of a beautiful sight, or promising future in Frost’s case, have been simply too tempting to ignore...

Such behavior, however, often has unnoticeable consequences on that natural setting. Research has shown that outdoor recreation in general — not just social trails — can and often does negatively affect wildlife. Human presence can startle animals, leading to increased stress levels and causing them to burn energy reserves, which are particularly dire during cold winter months. This can also result in animals’ displacement and reduced productivity and, in the worse cases, even decrease their chances of survival.

For plants, it’s a similar story.

As social trails are used more and more, the soil becomes increasingly compacted so that the plants that used to grow there are no longer able to.

https://modernconservationist.com/sustainable-vs-social-trails-why-you-should-ignore-psychology-and-take-the-road-most-traveled/