Below is a news release from the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources. The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation is a member of the Utah Wildlife Migration Initiative, mentioned below. 

The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources and Utah Department of Transportation, as well as other partners, are working hard to reduce wildlife/vehicle collisions around the state and to also make it easier for wildlife and fish to make their important annual migrations. In 2025, the agencies and other partners installed several different structures and completed a few studies to help wildlife and fish migrate safely in various areas throughout Utah. 

Utah Wildlife Migration Initiative 

The Utah Wildlife Migration Initiative was founded in 2017 to better track and study the migration patterns of different wildlife and fish species in the state and to help them make those important journeys. Most of the data comes from animals wearing GPS tracking devices or from fish tagged with implanted transmitters. 

“The tracking data helps us understand when and where animals are moving and helps us determine critical areas for wildlife migration,” DWR Migration Initiative Coordinator Makeda Hanson said. “Connecting wildlife through all their crucial seasonal ranges is accomplished through making habitat improvements; maintaining areas for feeding, rest and cover; removing barriers or impediments to wildlife movement; and incorporating wildlife into land-use planning for activities like recreation and development. Wildlife crossings, when constructed strategically, are really important for maintaining wildlife connectivity across the landscape and tying together all the other work happening to benefit wildlife in Utah.” 

The fish and wildlife structures that assist migration vary and can include: 

  • Overpasses, which allow wildlife to cross over a roadway. 
  • Bridges, which allow vehicles to cross over a river or ravine, while wildlife travel underneath the bridge. 
  • Culverts, which allow wildlife to cross under a roadway — these make up the majority of Utah’s wildlife crossings. 
  • Fences, which prevent wildlife from crossing roadways in certain areas and instead funnel the animals to an overpass or culvert, where they can safely cross a road. 
  • Various “fish ladders” and other structures in rivers and streams that help fish move up and downstream to meet their life history needs. 
  • Fish “barriers,” which are structures that prevent fish from migrating into areas of rivers that are harmful and don’t help them complete their life cycles (or where they may compete with or be preyed on by non-native fish species). 

“Utah made history when it completed the first wildlife overpass in the U.S. in 1975 on I-15 near Beaver,” DWR Wildlife Impact Analysis Coordinator Daniel Olson said. “Since then, dozens of projects have been completed around the state that allow the passage of wildlife and fish. These structures typically take several months to build, depending on the size and weather conditions, and they can take several years of prior planning and collaboration. We are so grateful for the partnerships we have with various state agencies, land-management agencies, private landowners and other organizations to implement these important structures for fish and wildlife around the state.” 

Here are the areas where the DWR, UDOT and other partners completed new projects to assist with wildlife and fish migration in 2025: 

Central Utah 

  • The DWR and UDOT, along with a private contractor, completed a wildlife/traffic study on state Route 248 between U.S. 40 and Kamas. The study provides recommendations and strategies to mitigate wildlife/vehicle collisions in the area. 
  • Roughly $200,000 was allocated from a grant and the Mule Deer Foundation for fencing for ongoing Eagle Mountain mule deer migration corridor preservation efforts. 
  • UDOT also worked to expand U.S. 189 from Deer Creek to Charleston, and a wildlife exclusion fence will be installed on this last patch of unfenced area along this roadway. This fencing project ties into one of the highest-use mule deer underpasses in the state. 

Northern Utah 

  • Five mule deer silhouettes were placed along roadways with high wildlife/vehicle collisions throughout northern Utah. This included two silhouettes placed along Highway 91, two along Highway 89 and one along state Route 101. The silhouettes were designed by a local artist and fabricated by Dedicated Hunters and were designed to alert drivers on the road and encourage them to be mindful of wildlife in the area. 
  • Wildlife exclusion fencing was replaced and improved along Highway 89 in Sardine Canyon between Box Elder and Cache counties. 
  • A bridge was built in the Bear Lake area to replace a road culvert near the mouth of North Eden Creek. Trout Unlimited led this project, which successfully reconnected the creek to the lake, making over 10 miles of the waterway accessible for the spawning and rearing of Bear Lake cutthroat trout migrating in the area. 

Southeastern Utah 

  • The DWR has been working in partnership with UDOT — with the help of Dedicated Hunter volunteers — to walk wildlife exclusion fencing both on U.S. 6 and state Route 10 to check for needed repairs. Last year, Dedicated hunters checked a total of 65 miles of wildlife exclusion fencing and documented locations needing repair along these two highways. The DWR and UDOT have worked to repair the fences, as needed. 

Southern Utah 

  • The DWR placed GPS tracking collars on mule deer east of Kanab in an effort to better monitor migration routes of deer in the area. This is part of an ongoing project along Highway 89, which will include the construction of three new wildlife crossings, additional wildlife exclusion fencing and other associated infrastructures. 
  • Changeable message boards were deployed along state Route 18, between Diamond Valley and Central, to warn drivers of deer crossings. The area is a seasonal hotspot for wildlife/vehicle collisions, especially during the winter months. 
  • Wildlife exclusion fencing was added along I-15 near Fillmore and Leeds. 
  • The DWR partnered with Sevier County on a project to stabilize a section of Clear Creek near Fremont Indian State Park in order to find a stabilization design that would protect a section of important county road, while still allowing fish passage. Maintaining fish passage was critical as part of a major conservation effort to restore the Clear Creek drainage to only native fish, like the Bonneville cutthroat trout. 
  • Zion National Park, in collaboration with the DWR, removed a barrier to upstream fish movement within the North Fork of the Virgin River, known as the Temple of Sinawava Dam. Based on fish-passage modeling and passive monitoring, this man-made low-head dam was a considerable barrier to free upstream fish movement. The dam was demolished and removed in March 2025, returning a natural gradient to this section of the river to allow for upstream free fish movement. 

Future and ongoing projects 

  • The DWR is working with UDOT to conduct a wildlife/vehicle collision-reduction study along I-84 in Box Elder County, between mileposts 5-35. This study aims to identify recommendations and strategies to mitigate collisions along this roadway. This area is a documented roadkill hotspot and an important migration corridor for big game moving across Utah-Idaho state lines. 
  • A wildlife/vehicle collision-reduction study is almost finished for an elk and deer wildlife-vehicle collision hotspot area between mileposts 71-96 along I-70. Cameras were placed to monitor the use of existing crossings by big game animals. The study will propose potential crossing and fencing solutions, along with cost estimates, to support future grant applications and project planning for this area. 
  • HawkWatch International launched a study to help reduce eagle and raptor strikes along roadways in Utah. 

“We are really excited about the grants that we have been able to secure to establish more wildlife crossings across Utah, in conjunction with the migration data provided by the DWR,” UDOT Natural Resource Manager Matt Howard said. “Many of our grant-funded projects are well underway and will be helping make roads safer for Utah drivers and wildlife soon. UDOT regions have done great work this year, replacing and maintaining existing wildlife fencing to ensure that these projects keep providing safe corridors.” 

(Photo credit: Utah Division of Wildlife Resources)