Acknowledging the Relevance of Elephant Sensory Perception to Human–Elephant Conflict Mitigation

Ball, Robbie; Jacobson, Sarah L.; Rudolph, Matthew S.; Trapani, Miranda; Plotnik, Joshua M.

doi:10.3390/ani12081018

Cited by 8 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 148 publications

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“…loss of income and earning potential, injuries and fatalities, food insecurity, increased exposure to disease and gender‐based violence, Barua et al, 2013; Khumalo & Yung, 2015; Manoa et al, 2020; Mayberry et al, 2017; Nyumba et al, 2020; Salerno et al, 2020) and elephants (e.g. increased poaching and retaliatory killing, physiological stress that disrupts cognition and behaviour and lowers female reproductive success, disturbance to social structure, and loss of genes from large, reproductively‐fit adults, Ahlering et al, 2011; Ball et al, 2022; Campbell‐Staton et al, 2021; Chiyo et al, 2011; Compaore et al, 2020; Gobush et al, 2008; McComb et al, 2001; Shannon et al, 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A mixed‐methods assessment of human‐elephant conflict in the Western Okavango Panhandle, Botswana

et al. 2023

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Human‐wildlife conflict, where interactions have negative impacts on both people and animals, is complex with underlying drivers and broad ecological and social impacts. From individual incidents and perceptions, to contemporary patterns and long‐term trends, a range of information about human‐wildlife conflict can help understand and manage challenges. However, many studies focus on a single data type or spatiotemporal scale. In the Western Okavango Panhandle in Botswana, people in rural farming communities share and compete for resources with a growing African savanna elephant population. Few previous studies have focused on human‐wildlife interactions in this region. We assessed spatiotemporal trends in human‐elephant conflict using reported conflict incidents (2008–2016), surveys of individual perceptions of conflict encompassing the late 1990s–2016, and detailed field raid assessments from 2016. We found complementary patterns among the data types at different geographic and spatial scales. We found that the number of annual HEC incidents have increased over time, although not evenly across space, with increases primarily in the northern region of the Panhandle. Crop raiding presents both chronic and acute challenges for farmers, with the amount of damage incurred per incident largely dependent on the size of elephant group involved rather than factors within the farmers' control such as guarding or types of crops grown. Our results provide a characterization of contemporary conflict incidents and long‐term trends, despite scarce historical data. Combining the reporting and assessment data with surveyed local ecological knowledge offered a multidimensional understanding of human‐wildlife conflict for a region where this information was lacking. It is an important precursor to effective and collaborative conflict management and mitigation. When possible, this mixed‐methods approach may facilitate understanding for complex human‐wildlife interactions and support the diverse communities and stakeholders involved with conflict‐related challenges. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A mixed‐methods assessment of human‐elephant conflict in the Western Okavango Panhandle, Botswana

et al. 2023

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Do African Savanna Elephants (Loxodonta africana) Show Interspecific Social Long‐Term Memory for Their Zoo Keepers?

Kränzlin,

Azogu‐Sepe,

Pouydebat

et al. 2024

Zoo Biology

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ABSTRACT“An elephant never forgets” is a popular phrase that refers not only to the elephant's extraordinary ability to remember migration routes but also to its pronounced social long‐term memory (SLTM). Previous studies have shown intra‐ and interspecies SLTM performance, but the ability of elephants to have memories of individual humans has not yet been investigated. We tested this interspecific SLTM using auditory, olfactory, and visual stimuli, each from familiar and unfamiliar persons, in two African savanna elephant (Loxodonta africana) cows living in a zoo. The two‐choice object tests revealed a higher interest in sensory stimuli from familiar keepers they had not seen for 13 years than in unfamiliar people. Statistically significant differences were found for olfactory stimuli. In addition, there was significantly more interest in visual stimuli from current keepers than in stimuli from unfamiliar people. Contrary to the results of a previous study with elephants, this was not observed for olfactory stimuli. Due to the small sample size and magnitude of the influencing factors, that is, outdoor experiment, only spatial separation of the animals, these results only represent indications of the possible interspecific SLTM. Nevertheless, we were able to provide the first empirical evidence that L. africana stores information about specific people over a long period of time. Further studies with larger sample sizes, cross‐modal testing, and people disliked by the elephants could provide more insights.

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The human-elephant conflict in Sri Lanka: history and present status

et al. 2023

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Human-elephant conflict (HEC) is a severe conservation, socio-economic and environmental issue of forests and ecosystems in elephant inhabiting countries, including Sri Lanka. Due to the rapid growth of human and elephant populations, both struggles to share limited land resources. The major causes and contexts of HEC in Sri Lanka include land use change, habitat loss due to human population growth, crop raiding behavior, problem elephants, and changes in agriculture practices. Since 2019, 125 people and 370 elephants have killed annually on average due to the conflict. Also, Sri Lanka has recorded the highest annual elephant deaths and second-highest human deaths due to HEC. The human death rate has increased by approximately 42% over previous three decades. The Sri Lankan government provides compensation for death and disability of the human caused by elephants and for elephant-damaged houses or properties. The Sri Lankan elephant (Elephas maximus maximus) is an endangered subspecies. It’s home range is restricted to 50–150 km2 and depends on the availability of food, water, and shelter of the habitat in which they live. Various management strategies have been developed by the government and villagers to prevent and mitigate HEC. Today, Sri Lankan elephants are protected under Sri Lankan law, with punishment by fines and jail terms. This article reviews the history, present status, and traditional conflict management of HEC in Sri Lanka. We suggest a satellite data fusion approach with GIS modeling to identify risk zones of HEC to develop further protective measures for humans and elephants.

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Acknowledging the Relevance of Elephant Sensory Perception to Human–Elephant Conflict Mitigation

Cited by 8 publications

References 148 publications

A mixed‐methods assessment of human‐elephant conflict in the Western Okavango Panhandle, Botswana

A mixed‐methods assessment of human‐elephant conflict in the Western Okavango Panhandle, Botswana

Do African Savanna Elephants (Loxodonta africana) Show Interspecific Social Long‐Term Memory for Their Zoo Keepers?

The human-elephant conflict in Sri Lanka: history and present status

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