The four living tapir species are all threatened by habitat loss and roadkill mortality, and protecting their welfare requires both forest conservation and targeted infrastructure modifications to reduce vehicle collisions.
Tapir welfare faces the compounding threats of habitat fragmentation and road mortality across all four species and their ranges from Central America through South America to Southeast Asia. Individual tapirs killed by vehicles experience acute trauma, while surviving tapirs navigating fragmented habitat face the chronic stress of attempting to maintain territories and find mates across road barriers. The welfare of tapir populations in agricultural and forest edge landscapes requires targeted infrastructure interventions including underpass construction at key crossing points, combined with reduced vehicle speeds at night when tapirs are most active. Long-term welfare requires addressing the habitat loss driving tapirs into closer contact with road networks through forest protection and restoration.