Home»All Photographs»Asia»Trans-Mongolian railroad and spur railroads

Railroad fence and underpasses along Trans-Mongolian railroad.

The Trans-Mongolian railway connects Ulan-Ude along the Trans-Siberian railway in Russia with Jining in China. From there the railroad continues to Beijing. The Trans-Mongolian railroad is fenced. The fence is designed to keep livestock, including sheep and goats, off the railroad. The fenced railroad corridor is considered a very substantial barrier to large wild ungulates. However, some Mongolian gazelles do cross the fenced railroad corridor either at grade or through underpasses that are designed for livestock or hydrology. The fenced railroad corridor is an absolute barrier or nearly an absolute barrier for Asiatic wild ass (khulan) though. The railroad is not only a barrier but also a source of mortality for Mongolian gazelles. Some of the Mongolian gazelles that cross the fence get entangled in the fence and die. Other gazelles that are inside the fenced corridor when a train approaches are killed by trains directly.

Click here for images of Mongolian gazelles.