  Motivated by recent findings of enhanced species survival when fragmented
habitats are reconnected through narrow strips of land [S. Pimm, and C. N.
Jenkins, Am. Sci. {\bf 107}(3), 162 (2019).], we study the effect of a corridor
connecting two square regions on the survival time of three models exhibiting
extinction/survival phase transitions: the basic contact process (CP), the
diffusive contact process, and the two-species symbiotic contact process
(2SCP). We find that connecting the regions generally increases the survival
time for $\lambda\ge \lambda_c$, where $\lambda$ is the reproduction rate and
$\lambda_c$ its critical value. The enhancement of the survival time increases
with $\lambda$, and is largest in the 2SCP.
