Nepal is famous for its national parks and tiger populations, but a new study warns that the country's rapid infrastructure boom is quietly destroying wildlife habitats in the unprotected spaces between them. Roads, railways, and power lines are slicing through landscapes that animals rely on for migration, feeding, and breeding, and the damage is happening far beyond park boundaries.
Roads and railways cut through critical corridors
Researchers mapped more than 100,000 kilometers of infrastructure across Nepal and found that roads and railways now crisscross nearly every part of the country outside protected areas. These corridors are not just noisy. They physically block animals from moving between forests and rivers, fragmenting populations of species like leopards, deer, and wild boar. The study, published in the journal Conservation Biology, used satellite data and field surveys to assess how infrastructure overlaps with wildlife habitat. It found that areas with high biodiversity outside parks are the most heavily affected. In some regions, roads are spaced so closely that no patch of habitat remains large enough to support a viable population of large mammals.
Power lines pose a hidden danger to birds
Birds face a different but equally serious threat. Power lines crisscross open skies and forest edges, and many species collide with the wires or are electrocuted when they perch on transformers. The study identified several hotspots where power lines cut through important bird areas, including the Terai lowlands and the mid-hills. Species like the ultramarine flycatcher and other migratory birds are especially vulnerable. The researchers noted that power line collisions are one of the leading causes of death for some bird populations in Nepal, yet the problem receives far less attention than poaching or habitat loss from farming.
Why local communities should pay attention
For people living near these infrastructure projects, the consequences are not just ecological. Many rural communities depend on wildlife for tourism revenue, and fragmented habitats mean fewer animals to see. Farmers also report increased crop damage when animals are forced into smaller areas and cannot migrate to find food. The study's authors argue that Nepal's environmental impact assessments often focus only on protected areas, ignoring the cumulative effect of roads and power lines on the wider landscape. They recommend that future infrastructure projects include wildlife crossings, underground power cables in sensitive zones, and buffer zones that connect parks to each other.
Nepal has made global headlines for doubling its tiger population and expanding its national park system. But this study shows that conservation success inside parks can be undone if the land outside them becomes a maze of concrete and cables. The country's development goals and its wildlife goals are on a collision course, and the places where they meet are the unprotected spaces that most people never think about.
