Gibbon Uses Bridge Over Active Train Tracks

Why this is here: Scientists installed five canopy bridges equipped with safety nets to help animals cross the railway line, a critical habitat fragmentation issue.

GV Gopi of the Wildlife Institute of India in Dehradun recorded a male Western Hoolock Gibbon crossing a canopy bridge over the Lumding–Dibrugarh railway line in Assam’s Hollongapar Gibbon Sanctuary. The gibbon confidently swung across the structure, marking the first documented instance of this behavior over active train tracks. Forest officials installed five double-rope canopy bridges with safety nets after the railway line was electrified.

These bridges aim to help tree-dwelling animals safely cross the tracks without facing trains or predators. Linear infrastructure like railways often fragments habitats, threatening wildlife that lives in the trees.

The Western Hoolock Gibbon is India’s only ape species and is listed as Endangered by the IUCN. Its fragmented distribution across Northeast India, Bangladesh, and Myanmar complicates conservation. Gopi notes that long-term gibbon survival requires careful infrastructure planning and forest corridor restoration.