For a sloth, a gap in the rainforest canopy can be as dangerous as a broken road is for us. On 4 August 2026, Costa Rica approved legislation designed to make those gaps part of infrastructure planning rather than an afterthought.
The measure requires wildlife crossings or other mitigation in public infrastructure projects when scientific evidence shows that ecological connectivity has been disrupted. That may sound like dry planning policy, but for sloths and other tree-dwelling animals it could mean the difference between a safe route through the canopy and a risky journey across the ground, a road or a power line.
Costa Rica is not promising a bridge over every road tomorrow. The real change is more practical: projects must identify wildlife movement problems early, budget for appropriate solutions and plan long-term maintenance.
What did Costa Rica approve?
According to The Sloth Conservation Foundation's report on the new law, Costa Rica's Legislative Assembly approved the measure unanimously with 56 votes in favour and none against. It adds a new Article 31 bis to the country's Organic Environmental Law.
When expert scientific evidence shows that public infrastructure has disrupted ecological connectivity, projects must include wildlife crossings or other suitable mitigation. The rule covers terrestrial and aquatic wildlife, so the answer will not always be a rope bridge. Depending on the species and landscape, it could involve canopy crossings, underpasses, culverts, fencing or another evidence-led design.
The law also moves the conversation earlier. Wildlife routes and roadkill hotspots are meant to be studied during planning, pre-investment and budgeting, not noticed only after a road has divided a habitat.
Why roads are such a problem for sloths
A rainforest does not need to be completely cleared to become difficult for wildlife. Roads, buildings, gardens and utility corridors can create smaller breaks that separate one group of trees from another. The forest may still look green from above while its canopy routes have quietly disappeared.
Sloths are especially vulnerable because their bodies are built for pulling beneath branches, not travelling quickly across open ground. Descending exposes them to vehicles, dogs, people and other hazards. Power lines can look like a convenient substitute route but may bring the risk of electrocution.
Keeping the canopy connected allows a sloth to reach food, shelter and potential mates without making that dangerous descent. It also helps other arboreal neighbours, including monkeys, kinkajous, squirrels and porcupines.
Wildlife crossings must be backed by evidence
One of the strongest parts of the new approach is its emphasis on the right crossing in the right place. Developers are expected to use scientific studies to identify movement routes and roadkill hotspots, design appropriate measures, gain approval from Costa Rica's National System of Conservation Areas and include construction and maintenance costs in the project budget.
That matters because a crossing is not automatically useful just because it looks green or carries a wildlife sign. Its location, height, connections, materials and maintenance all affect whether animals can find and safely use it. Monitoring then shows which species cross, how quickly they adopt the route and whether the design needs improvement.
The legislation also addresses existing roads when they undergo maintenance, rehabilitation, widening or major improvement. It does not demand an instant retrofit of every route, but it creates opportunities to repair connectivity as infrastructure is renewed.
Canopy bridges already have a track record
This is not a theory waiting for its first test. The Sloth Conservation Foundation's Connected Gardens project combines native tree planting, community work and wildlife bridges to reconnect fragmented habitat in Costa Rica's South Caribbean.
The organisation reports hundreds of installed canopy bridges and thousands of observations of wildlife using the network. Local landowners help maintain connected routes between properties, turning individual gardens into parts of a larger biological corridor.
Camera traps provide particularly useful evidence. In one six-month monitoring project, a bridge camera captured more than 6,000 photographs, including about 4,000 images of howler monkeys. Kinkajous and opossums were among the earliest users, with crossings recorded within days of installation.
Those results do not mean every bridge will work instantly or equally well. They show why monitoring matters. Conservation teams can compare species, timings and crossing frequency, then improve future placement and construction.
Planning for maintenance is as important as building
A canopy rope can weather, loosen or become obstructed. Vegetation changes, roads widen and animal routes shift. A crossing that is installed for a photograph but never inspected is not a lasting conservation solution.
By requiring projects to include long-term maintenance costs, the new law treats wildlife infrastructure more like any other essential safety feature. A culvert must remain open. Fencing must guide animals towards a crossing rather than trap them. A canopy bridge must stay secure and connected to usable trees on both sides.
The law also gives Costa Rica's conservation authorities a role in identifying priority conflict areas. The Sloth Conservation Foundation says SINAC must begin identifying important crossing points and ecological conflict zones across existing infrastructure within 24 months of the regulations taking effect.
What this could mean beyond Costa Rica
Costa Rica's decision recognises a simple idea: development and wildlife movement do not have to be planned separately. Roads can still connect communities while crossings reconnect habitats. The best design begins with data about where animals actually move and builds mitigation into the project from the start.
For sloths, the benefit is wonderfully concrete. A route of trees and bridges lets an animal remain where its anatomy works best: above the ground, beneath the branches and away from traffic.
The law will now have to prove itself through regulations, good studies, careful construction, funding and maintenance. It is a framework, not a finished network. Even so, making ecological connectivity a legal planning requirement is a meaningful shift from voluntary rescue work after a problem appears.
A wildlife crossing may look like a small piece of rope above a road. To a sloth, it can restore the missing link in an entire landscape.
Sources and image credit
- The Sloth Conservation Foundation: Costa Rica Approves Landmark Wildlife Crossing Law
- The Sloth Conservation Foundation: Connected Gardens Project
- The Sloth Conservation Foundation: 6,000+ Camera Trap Images From a Sloth Crossing
Featured image: Gabriel Ayala / The Sloth Conservation Foundation.