Human-wildlife conflict is a shockingly common problem, often with enormous consequences for both individual animals and entire populations.
When human-wildlife conflict comes to mind, you may immediately think of wildlife crime instead - which isn't wrong, since many regions with wildlife crime problems like poaching are also areas where people may frequently deal with human-wildlife conflict, causing the two issues to go hand-in-hand. But human-wildlife conflict is a much broader issue encompassing many ways that human presence and interference can cause problems for us and animals alike. Human-wildlife conflict includes:
- Elephants trampling a farmer's crops, resulting in retaliation
- New real estate developments infringing on ecosystems where predator species live, leading to predators having less territory and less food, which in turn leads to predators attacking domestic animals and livestock
- Freeways dividing the territory of animals like mountain lions, leading to wildlife venturing into neighborhoods or being killed by cars
- Lead bullets used in hunting causing scavengers like condors to die of lead poisoning
These are just a few examples of how humans can negatively impact wildlife, and it's clear to see how many of these scenarios could escalate. Human-wildlife conflict solutions don't just include ways in which we can prevent these issues (for example, through tracking predators, monitoring populations' territories, or building barriers and wildlife crossings monitored by sensors), but also the ways in which we can help people connect with wildlife and care about learning to live alongside them.
If you're interested in solutions that can prevent human-wildlife conflict, join this group and get to know the people who are working to protect and save species around the world!
Header image: Casey Allen on Unsplash
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I am a PhD student working on human-carnivore conflict and coexistence
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The primary focus of the research is to explore how red deer movements, space use, habitat selection and foraging behaviour change during the wolf recolonization process.
10 February 2024
Article
An update on @Alasdair and @adanger24's HWC project
11 January 2024
Listen in on our interview with human-predator conflict expert, Gabi Fleury and gain a deeper understanding of the importance of holistic, ethical and community-led approaches to developing tech solutions for...
8 December 2023
TagRanger® is a state-of-the-art wildlife finding, monitoring and tracking solution for research, conservation and environmental professionals. With superior configurability for logging data, reporting location and...
23 November 2023
The illegal wildlife trade varies widely regarding species and geographical variance, necessitating niche and tailored research. Against this background, this study on elephant poaching in Tanzania was conducted at the...
30 October 2023
Careers
The Institute of Zoology (IoZ), the research division of the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), is seeking to fill three new permanent positions by recruiting outstanding early-career researchers as Research Fellows (...
20 October 2023
Listen in on our interview with Mara Elephant Project’s Tracking Manager, Wilson Sairowua, as he explains how MEP is using software, geofencing and drone technologies to resolve human-elephant conflict across Maasai...
20 October 2023
We're delighted to announce that Connected Conservation Foundation and Airbus Foundation have today launched round 2 of the ‘Satellites for Biodiversity Award’.
2 October 2023
Article
Five #tech4wildlife people, projects and updates that caught our attention this month. An AI supported bear early warning system, a project that's connecting indigenous communities with high speed internet, exploring...
12 September 2023
The WCS team in Uganda is working with impacted communities, district leaders and wildlife authorities to come up with innovative solutions to Human Wildlife Conflicts and curb wildlife crimes in our time. Check out...
5 September 2023
Read our interview with Sandra Maryanne, a young conservation tech innovator raised in Taita, Ivarenyi with first-hand experience on the challenges of human-elephant conflict within her community. To address this, she...
7 August 2023
Human-Wildlife Conflict is a pressing conservation challenge affecting natural ecosystems, biodiversity and local communities across East Africa. This has led to the development and adoption of diverse conservation...
1 August 2023
April 2024
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Description | Activity | Replies | Groups | Updated |
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Hi @Henrikcox I hope you are well. I am not sure if you may remember myself and my colleague from CLS. We had a meeting and met in-person at Earthranger last year. ... |
+15
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Human-Wildlife Conflict, Sensors | 2 hours 5 minutes ago | |
Great to know Lars! Let's stay in touch on this, would love to join the testing out there.Cheers,Henrik |
+68
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Human-Wildlife Conflict | 19 hours 27 minutes ago | |
This thread is off-topic in this conversation, so happy to continue it in the other one. However, just noting - your system is one example, but not the only one - there are... |
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Human-Wildlife Conflict, Data management and processing tools | 2 days 20 hours ago | |
Hello community, I wanted to share some exciting updates about my ongoing conservation project for endangered species. I post this here... |
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Human-Wildlife Conflict, Early Career | 2 weeks 1 day ago | |
Hi Rokshana,Maybe you can try this product from India called ANIDERS - I think this product would help you a lot. This is their website - |
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Human-Wildlife Conflict, East Africa Community | 2 weeks 5 days ago | |
Perfect thanks! I am still a novice using Python but my wife can help me! |
+6
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AI for Conservation, Camera Traps, Human-Wildlife Conflict | 1 month 1 week ago | |
@PaulAllin Thanks for your valuable insights. Zenmuse H20N seems to be very powerful and useful in this case. However, I'm looking for a more affordable option for a self-funded... |
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Drones, Human-Wildlife Conflict | 1 month 1 week ago | |
Hi David, would love to collaborate with you on this topic. A few years ago Dr. Nick van Doormaal did his PhD on snaring with us and we ran a number of experiments on the... |
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AI for Conservation, Drones, Emerging Tech, Human-Wildlife Conflict, Wildlife Crime | 1 month 2 weeks ago | |
Hi Amit,The most important thing is that the livestock owners contact you as soon as possible after finding the carcass. We commonly do two things if they contact us on the same... |
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Camera Traps, AI for Conservation, Conservation Tech Training and Education, Early Career, Human-Wildlife Conflict, Protected Area Management Tools | 1 month 3 weeks ago | |
Hi Danilo. you seem very passionate about this initiative which is a good start.It is an interesting coincidence that I am starting another project for the coral reefs in the... |
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Acoustics, AI for Conservation, Biologging, Camera Traps, Citizen Science, Climate Change, Community Base, Connectivity, Drones, Emerging Tech, Human-Wildlife Conflict, Open Source Solutions, Sensors, Software and Mobile Apps, Wildlife Crime | 1 month 3 weeks ago | |
Hi Jacobo,We have launched a new tracking/logging/finding technology which you may find of interest https://www.tagranger.com/ Based on LoRaWAN (but with yor own... |
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Human-Wildlife Conflict | 1 month 4 weeks ago | |
Fire detection is a sort of broad idea. Usually people detect the products of fire, and most often this is smoke.Many home fire detectors in the US use a radioactive source... |
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Community Base, Conservation Tech Training and Education, Data management and processing tools, Ethics of Conservation Tech, Human-Wildlife Conflict, Open Source Solutions, Protected Area Management Tools, Sensors, Wildlife Crime | 2 months ago |
From the Field: Dr Raman Sukumar and Technology Developments Needed to Conserve Elephants
5 April 2017 12:00am
Foxlights predator deterrant
24 November 2015 6:53pm
23 March 2017 12:24pm
Thanks for the reply. I will write to the contact because of the doubts.
24 March 2017 8:22pm
Personally, I'd order a few of the $10 radios from eBay and see how they work. They are cheap enough that if they don't work out, you wouldn't be out much money.
For $27, you could try one of these which is rated Waterproof Level IPX3; it can be used during rainy weather.
From my brief search, I think you are going to have a tough time finding something solar, waterproof, and inexpensive. But do let us know what you turn up!
How to stop the thieves when all we want to capture is wildlife in action
23 March 2017 12:00am
From the Field: María José Bolgeri and tech to alleviate Puma-Human conflict
22 March 2017 12:00am
#Tech4Wildlife Photo Challenge: Our favourites from 2016
1 March 2017 12:00am
Working with wolves: Sheepdog puppies join new flock
28 February 2017 12:00am
Infrastructure impacts
22 December 2016 4:12pm
6 January 2017 10:06am
Hi Nilanga,
This is a topic of my interest too. I have been doing some work on getting some mitigations implemented on some highways in central India. So what excatly do you mean by tools? Some gadget to detect physical presence on large mammals around highways and railway tracks ? Or some software tools to predict animals crossings along them.
Regards
Udayan
6 January 2017 1:36pm
Hi Udayan,
Many thanks for following up and it's great to hear that it's an area of interest for you as well. I'm certainly interested to hear more about the work you've been doing on mitigation actions implemented or being tested to prevent wildlife collisions on highways in central India. Are they early detection tools? By tools, I mean either technology to detect presence and provide warnings to drivers or railway operators, or even tools to predict based on movement patterns. I'm interested in learning about any such measure that is being developed. You may be aware that in the last month alone, around 11 elephants have died from train collisions in northeast India. If there are means being developed to detect presence and prevent such deaths, it would be wonderful to know more about them and how we could test and implement such measures. Look forward to hearing from you.
Best,
Nilanga
Wolf protection vests for dogs
14 December 2016 1:49pm
Conservation Leadership Programme 2017 Award
21 November 2016 12:00am
5 Smart Technologies That Will Crack Down On Wildlife Trafficking
14 November 2016 12:00am
WildLabs success! E-shepherd predator deterrent trials in USA
25 January 2016 8:04pm
11 February 2016 8:14pm
Thanks, @Suzanne.Stone ! It would be wonderful if the community could track your progress in this thread. Also looking forward to reading your Journal of Mammology paper.
- Rachel
26 April 2016 2:12pm
@Rachel , the last time I checked (2015), it was about R1200-00 per collar. In South Africa that can be approximated as the price of one sheep. To my mind, that only makes it viable and affordable if the predation (or theft?) levels are very high (more than 10% losses/year?).
I have to add two additional observations:
- Sheep breeds differ in the extend to which they flock together in a single herd (e.g. African indigenous breeds graze together in larger herds than the most popular breeds in South Africa (Merino or Dorper). In these breeds it might be possible to have less collars per sheep.
- My greatest fear is that it will work wel for a year or two. Jackals (and I assume coyotes as well) are extremely intelligent. And methods which worked at first (e.g. bell collars) soon became useless. With jackals we also have the issue that many of the jackals on farms are now starting to hunt in packs instead of the typical territorial pairs (with helpers). So a commonly solitary hunter (the pairs would often hunt separately) is now turning into a pack hunter. However, I do think that it might remain fairly effective against solitary cats. I would be interested in the results of the tests in America, but I think it should be for at least a 3 year period (I know funding etc. might be an issue).
3 November 2016 5:09pm
@Suzanne.Stone have you had any success with your trials in Idaho?
Camera Trap based Alarm Systems
22 March 2016 9:14am
12 April 2016 10:19am
This might be a silly question, but why do you need a camera trap for either purpose - unless you want a record of specific individuals?
If the aim is to provide an alarm to scare off elephants then a system that uses a simple motion sensor wired to an alarm would do the same thing at a much lower cost without the risk of damage or theft that all camera traps suffer from.
If the aim is to alert locals then the Indian Nature Conservation Foundations Elephant Early Warning System is worth exploring http://ncf-india.org/projects/in-the-elephant-hills
21 April 2016 9:01pm
Hi James,
Thanks for sharing information on NCF's early warning system. NCF's tool is great and works well for the context in Valparai where it's being used. We work closely with them as well. As you are aware, the context for each conflict situation is different. These are open plantation areas where elephants can be seen if present in any patch, while in other areas, it's harder to tell when they come out of forested protected areas and into adjacent habitation in order to warn people. And for a number of the landscapes where we work, that particular approach may not be as effective, we are trying to test other forms of early detection. Do let us know if you learn of any results from camera-trapping early warning systems as well using a tool that could potentially serve multiple purposes. Many thanks.
Nilanga
27 October 2016 11:01pm
Hi everyone!
I have just posted about my machine-vision based elephant-detection system which I am currently attempting to develop! https://www.wildlabs.net/community/thread/284
Internet Cats Just Got Bigger
26 October 2016 12:00am
New journal article shows deficiency of studies on effectiveness of predator controls
2 September 2016 1:46pm
How can we bridge the gap in mitigating human-wildlife conflict?
2 August 2016 1:23pm
27 August 2016 5:09am
Hi John, I have two good friends in Kenya who have some answers. I'll ask them to come here and tell you more...
Marie
Perspectives from the World Ranger Congress
10 August 2016 12:00am
Wildlife Tracking Equipment Grants from Holohil Transmitters
20 July 2016 12:00am
Article: Drawing Eyes on Cow Butts May Ward Off Hungry Lions
19 July 2016 7:25am
Camera traps reveal mysteries of nature
18 July 2016 12:00am
Can Drones Live up to the Hype?
8 July 2016 12:00am
Passive Acoustic Monitoring: Listening Out for New Conservation Opportunities
29 June 2016 12:00am
TEAM Network and Wildlife Insights
28 April 2016 12:00am
Migration monitoring app
25 April 2016 1:36pm
Deterring bears while backpacking
5 April 2016 3:15pm
19 April 2016 3:32pm
Ho John,
That's a great idea and thanks for sharing, but as you said, limitations on battery and speaker capacity abound. Might anyone else have any thoughts on how we could use apps to prevent HWC? There are apps that provide the ability to track wildlife through satellite collars for monitoring purposes. Is anyone aware of whether this type of app is being used also for HWC prevention using geo-fencing through collars or other means? Thanks.
Nilanga
15th International Elephant & Rhino Conservation and Research Symposium
4 March 2016 12:00am
Mobile Phone Reporting for Rapid Wildlife Health Response in Uganda
22 December 2015 12:00am
Achieving Moonshots: Advancing Humankind and Preserving Nature
22 December 2015 12:00am
The Impact of the Internet of Things
10 December 2015 12:00am
22 March 2017 11:29pm
Sorry I have no idea about separate solar radios. However the "Jakkalsjaer" a South-African product, includes solar panels and a siren with the radio and costs about US$123.36 at current exchange rates.
http://www.farmersweekly.co.za/archive/wanted-non-lethal-predator-control/
You can contact André Theron directly: [email protected]
HTH
Chavoux