Patterns of crop rading by wild ungulates and elephants in Ramnagar Forest Division, Uttarakhand
Crop raiding is a major form of human–wildlife conflict that not only affects livelihoods of farmers living close to forest areas but also jeopardizes the objective of wildlife conservation. In this study, we report patterns associated with crop raiding based on periodic fi eld inspections of 95 cro...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Utah State University
2017-05-01
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| Series: | Human-Wildlife Interactions |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/hwi/vol11/iss1/8 |
| Summary: | Crop raiding is a major form of human–wildlife conflict that not only affects livelihoods of farmers living close to forest areas but also jeopardizes the objective of wildlife conservation. In this study, we report patterns associated with crop raiding based on periodic fi eld inspections of 95 crop fields spread across 16 villages in India. Average raided area of the fi eld was highest in seedling stage (21%). Fields closer to the forest edge incurred higher damage in the seedling (22%) and mature stages (7%) than fields farther from the forest edge, although this was not statistically significant. Guarding was found to be ineffective in decreasing crop raiding, with no statistical difference in the mean area of damage between guarded and unguarded fields. Cheetal (Axis axis), sambar (Rusa unicolor), nilgai (Boselaphus tragocamelus), and wild pig (Sus scrofa) were the main raiders in fields close to the forest edge whereas nilgai and wild pig were chief raiders in fields farther from the forest edge. Results of this study suggest that in the study area, wild pig and nilgai are more problematic species than elephants (Elephas maximus), which are reported to cause the most damage in other landscapes. |
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| ISSN: | 2155-3874 2155-3874 |