Browsing by Subject "human-wildlife conflict"
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(2023)Carnivores all around the world are struggling as a result of increased anthropogenic activity. In many areas, human-carnivore conflict is a main driver of this struggle, driven by environmental challenges and leading to negative results for both people and the wildlife. The natural habitat of most carnivore species is also disappearing fast, which can lead to population decreases and even local or global extinctions of some of the world’s most recognised carnivores. Carnivores have high ecological and cultural significance, and therefore it is vital to understand how these challenges are affecting the different species in various environments. Even though the struggle of carnivores is widely recognised, it has not been widely studied in all parts of the world. In my thesis I study how large carnivores in Sibiloi National Park, northern Kenya, are responding to a quickly increasing anthropogenic pressure in the area. Together with the Daasanach, camera traps were used near bomas for a timespan of three years to discover which species are still habiting this rapidly evolving landscape. I assumed that because of the different robustness at which different carnivore species are able to respond to environmental changes, the most commonly observed species would be the ones that have previously been often seen in the area by the Daasanach and researchers and exhibit a generalist behaviour towards prey and habitat preferences, such as the spotted hyena (Crocuta crocuta). In total I observed over 20 different mammal species out of which 6 were chosen as the focal carnivore species due to the higher amount of interactions they typically have with the people and their livestock. In addition I focus on the possible ecological and behavioural adaptations of the focal species, especially daily activity patterns near the bomas and seasonal variation of encounter rates. These results help us understand how carnivores have adapted to the changing landscape of Sibiloi where human-carnivore conflict has been increasing in recent years. My first hypothesis is that carnivores have become more nocturnal around the bomas than they would be in a completely natural habitat with little anthropogenic pressure to reduce the risk of being harmed by humans. I also hypothesise that there are more carnivores present during the dry seasons (June-September and January-February) due to the decrease in wild herbivores that forces the carnivores near the bomas. Through statistical analysis I will also study the probability of meeting a carnivore near the bomas. I predict that the frequency at which carnivores approach humans and their livestock will depend on the season and if there are either wild herbivores or livestock nearby. In the end I will discuss what implications the study results can have for the future conservation of Sibiloi National Park and why the discoveries of this study are important for mitigating the increasing conflict between the Daasanach and carnivores.
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(2023)With growing fragmentation of elephant habitats across the world, elephants are coming in closer contact with humans, leading to increasing human-elephant conflict over limited space and resources. Laikipia county in Kenya represents one such region where conflict with elephants has been (and continues to be) a widespread problem, stemming from intense land-use zoning since the 1970s. This conflict mainly takes the form of crop raiding by elephants in community farmlands adjoining conservation areas. Electric fencing has been the widely used conflict management tool in the region to prevent elephants from entering croplands. However, the establishment of electric fences can often have hidden political underpinnings, both caused by and resulting in conflicting interests of different land users. As human-elephant conflict is multidimensional, it is essential to incorporate both human and wildlife dimensions when assessing the effectiveness of electric fences in conflict mitigation. While there is a growing body of research on the ecological effects of electric fences, the role of social perceptions in long-term fence effectiveness is often neglected. In this study, I therefore conducted a combined social and ecological assessment of electric fences in Laikipia. For this, I evaluated the perceptions of three local communities (Mutara, Ex Erok and Lorien) towards two major electric fences in Laikipia: the West Laikipia Fence and the Lorien Community Fence. I conducted 188 individual interviews with farmers (and opportunistically pastoralists) in all three communities, comprising questions on demographics, human-elephant conflict, electric fences, and involvement of communities in fence management. I then combined this information with data on fence breaking and crop raiding behaviour of elephants to effectively inform electric fence management strategies in the region. First, I looked at changes in the perceptions of Mutara and Ex Erok between 2016-2022, following upgrades made to the West Laikipia Fence after 2016, through a comparison of results with previous research. Second, I investigated potential factors influencing community perceptions towards fence effectiveness. Third, I mapped fence break and crop raiding hotspots in the three communities. And fourth, I determined the environmental factors affecting crop raiding intensity. Both Mutara and Ex Erok showed more positive perceptions towards fence effectiveness in 2022 as compared to 2016. The main factor found to influence fence perceptions was community involvement in fence management. Communities involved in fence management had more positive fence perceptions than those with no involvement. Crop raiding hotspot mapping revealed that some areas within each community were more affected by crop raiding than others. Fence break hotspot mapping identified fence sections of the West Laikipia Fence more prone to breakages by elephants. Finally, crop raiding intensity in a given farm was found to be strongly affected by the diversity of crops grown there, and weakly by its distance from the nearest roads and electric fences. My results therefore contribute to a better understanding of patterns of crop raiding and fence breakages of elephants in Laikipia. My findings highlight the importance of including sociological data from local communities in assessments of electric fence effectiveness, and also provide empirical evidence on the importance of involving local communities in electric fence management. The findings from this study can serve as a reference to relevant stakeholders for future improvements in electric fence management in Laikipia and elsewhere.
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