PABLO — There have always been jokes about why an animal, usually a chicken, crossed the road.

The answer, “to get to the other side,” may be the most relevant, especially for wildlife. While the joke may never get old, the reality is no laughing matter: Animals of all sizes crossing roadways can be hazardous for humans and the animal itself. These concerns and more were addressed in a new documentary on animal crossings across the United States, and featured the recently completed crossing on U.S. Highway 93 in Evaro.

Salish and Kootenai Tribes Wildlife Biologist Whisper Camel showed the documentary, “Division Street,” last Friday night at the Johnny Arlee/Victor Charlo Theatre in Pablo. Camel is featured on camera discussing the crossing with the film’s producer and director, Eric Bendick, because of the uniqueness, and rarity, of the project.

During her featured portion of the film, she discussed how the Flathead Reservation is a “culturally connected area,” making the animal crossings all the more important.

“I’m kind of a ham and will go talk to anyone about the wildlife crossing structures!” Camel, who is from Ronan, said about being contacted for the film. “I’m excited about the project and know a lot about the concepts.  I’ve been working on U.S. 93 since graduate school.”

The crossing, one of 43 planned for the 56 miles stretch of Highway 93 from Evaro to Polson, is one of few that go over a roadway in the United States. The other 42 crossings along the highway will go under the road, using culverts and bridges.

Yet the unique approach the Evaro crossing took has garnered plenty of attention, including that of the documentary filmmaker Bendick.

“Division Street” looks at the infiltration of roadways across the United States, beginning with the interstate overhaul in the 1950’s. Bendick sets out to prove that the roadway infrastructure the U.S. has now is outdated, and was built to fulfill man’s needs in getting from one point to another. He says that the highways were created before modern ecology was considered or known.

Another issue that wasn’t considered when this massive system was constructed was the “barrier effect” roads create among animal populations. Animal groups become divided, leading to smaller populations or extinction.

To prove the infiltration of roads, Bendick set out on a hike with a group of friends to find the area in the lower 48 states that is most removed from the nearest road. That location was in Yellowstone National Park, a spot that is 22 miles from the nearest roadway. The film weaves scenes of the group hiking to this remote location, as well as interviews with wildlife researchers in Florida, Montana and Banff, British Columbia, to discuss wildlife crossings and conservation issues that roadways create.

Part of the reason the Flathead Reservation and Lake County is such an important wildlife crossing area is because of the amount of wildlife here, as well a something the film calls the “Yellowstone to Yukon corridor.” This corridor represents migration routes for animals, and passes up Highway 93 toward Glacier.

Camel has worked on these issues for years, but hopes the movie will raise more awareness. She said she was contacted and filmed for the movie three years ago, but now with the crossing completed, the film is even more relevant now.

“Every deer crossing that isn’t at grade, across the road but rather under the road, is a deer that isn’t potentially being in a collision with a vehicle and being injured or killed,” Camel said. “The animals have been using the crossing structures and the examples from other crossing structures of this type show that animal use increases over the years. In my opinion, this project is a positive use of money and resources and I hope that people continue to see that they are working and that wildlife vehicle collisions will decrease over the years.”

To view pictures of animals using the crossing structures, visit http://www.cskt.org/tr/fwrc_wildlifecrossing.htm.