Human-Wolf Conflict in Human Dominated Landscapes of Ahmednagar District, Maharashtra & Possible Mitigation Measures

Human-Wolf Conflict in human dominated landscapes of Ahmednagar District, Maharashtra & Possible Mitigation Measures Roopa Krithivasan, Vidya Athreya, Morten Odden November 2009 Krithivasan, R¹, Athreya V.R.², Odden M³. 2009. Human-Wolf conflict in human dominated landscapes of Ahmednagar District, Maharashtra, India & Possible Mitigation Measures. Submitted to the Rufford Small Grants Foundation. Photograph on cover courtesy Ketil Skogen: A pack of wolves at Shendewadi village. ¹Roopa Krithivasan. Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. ([email protected]/[email protected]) ²Vidya Athreya. Kaati Trust, D3, DSK – Raanwara, Bavdhan, Pune 411021. India. ([email protected]) ³Morten Odden. Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Department of Ecology and Natural Resource Management, P.O. Box 5003, 1432 Ås, Norway ([email protected]) 1 Table of Contents ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................... 3 INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................... 4 REVIEW OF HUMAN-WOLF CONFLICT ................................................... 6 STUDY AREA.............................................................................................. 15 METHODS .................................................................................................. 20 DISCUSSION.............................................................................................. 37 Discussion of Mitigation Methods................................................ 40 RECOMMENDATIONS.............................................................................. 45 BIBLIOGRAPHY........................................................................................ 47 APPENDIX A. Attitudes and comments on wolves and conflict in study area.................................................................................................. 50 APPENDIX B. Demographics of interviewees (from village data)......... 52 APPENDIX C. Food habits of wolves (Modified from Jhala 2003)......... 53 2 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This work would not have been possible without the generous help and support of a number of organizations and people. I would like to thank The Rufford Small Grants Foundation funded the entirety of this project. Morten Odden was supported by a NINA grant. The Chief Wildlife Warden of Maharashtra, Chief Conservator of Forests, Nashik, Deputy Conservator of Forests (Ahmednagar), Range Forest Officers Sangamner and Akole, all of who were very helpful in providing us with the requisite permissions to work in the field. Particularly we would like to thank Mr Shivaji Phatangare (RFO Akole) who made us aware of the presence of the wolves in this region and also helped us to avail of local logistic support via the Gunjalwadi Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital, Sangamner, who very kindly allowed the use of their hostel for the duration of the field work. Many thanks to Nanabhau Ganjave for invaluable assistance in the field and his family for their hospitality. This project was made possible by the people who were kind enough to give their valuable time to participate in our surveys and interviews. We would like to thank our families, especially Saraswathi Krithivasan who looked over numerous drafts of this report. We would also like to thank John Linnell for reviewing a draft of this report. While this was a collaborative effort involving significant inputs from Vidya Athreya and Morten Odden, as the compiler of this report I take full responsibility for any errors that may present themselves in this work. Roopa Krithivasan October 19, 2009 3 INTRODUCTION With a population density of 336 per km2 (United Nations 2004) in a nation that also supports an incredible variety of habitats and biodiversity, it is no wonder that human-wildlife conflicts exist in many forms in India. Among others, blackbuck (Jhala 1993) and elephants (Sukumar 1990) are known to damage crops; leopards (Athreya 2004), snow leopards Mishra 1997) and wolves (Shahi 1983) prey on livestock; leopards (Athreya 2004), wolves (Shahi 1983), sloth bears (Rajpurohit and Krausman 2000)and elephants (Williams et al. 2001) are responsible for loss of human lives. Human-wildlife conflicts pose a complex and sensitive problem, to policy makers, conservationists, the general public, and of course the inhabitants of human-wildlife interfaces themselves. With growing attention on the need to protect and conserve our wild areas and wild species, the needs of people who bear the brunt of human-wildlife conflicts are often marginalized. Conversely, the fact that a conflict exists is often ignored, until irreparable damage has been done to wildlife. Clearly, there is a pressing need to study the issues that exist at such places, and put forward means to mitigate these conflicts to the advantage of both the major stakeholders: humans and wildlife. In this report, we will be looking at wolf-livestock conflicts in India, in Ahmednagar District, Maharashtra. Wolf-human conflicts are by no means unique to India. Wolves have historically inhabited much of the northern hemisphere, and conflicts between pastoralists and wolves have been the primary cause for their extirpation from much of the western world (Fritts et al. 2003). In India too, wolves come into constant conflict with livestock owners, possibly to a greater extent than anywhere else in the world because of the high density of humans and domestic animals [see map 1]. Yet the impact of wolves on human lives and livelihoods in India is poorly understood. Therefore, it is imperative that we understand the wolf-pastoralist dynamics and implement measures that will ensure the continued existence of the wolf; a key step in this direction will be to minimize the losses that humans sustain due to wolf depredations, and thus reduce their ill-will towards these animals. In this paper, we have attempted the following: Assess the impact of wolf depredation on pastoralists in an entirely human dominated landscapes: we used general surveys of livestock owners to estimate the economic impact of wolf depredations and determine which people are affected the most; Explore factors that affect depredations: we used the results of the surveys to assess which livestock owners suffered losses in the past two years and tried to understand which factors are associated with higher levels of depredation Suggest measures for minimizing losses due to depredation: we present the results of our work and using them we suggest measures by which losses to the locals may be reduced. Two young herders near Gunjalwadi, Sangamner. 4 REVIEW OF HUMAN-WOLF CONFLICT Overview of wolf-livestock conflicts around the world Textual evidence of human-livestock conflict in India dates back to circa 1000 BCE, in the form of verses in ancient texts including the Rig Veda (6, 51) and the Atharva Veda (5, 21) describing goats and sheep fleeing before hunting wolves. Nor are such accounts limited to ancient Indian texts – evidence from the bible (Matthew 10:16) and folklore ranging from the Americas to East Asia attest to both the constant intersections of wolves and pastoral societies, as well as the conflict that ensues at their interfaces worldwide. With the historical range of wolves covering much of the northern hemisphere, wolf- livestock conflicts have been documented in every country where both wolves and domesticated livestock exist (Fritts et al. 2003). Today, the wolf is regionally extinct in the United Kingdom, Ireland, a number of other European countries, Japan, and possibly Bangladesh (IUCN 2000). In all cases, actual or perceived conflict with livestock was the driving factor behind extermination (Fritts et al. 2003). The case in Japan for example clearly illustrates how attitudes play a large role in the fate of the wolf. Formerly home of the two smallest wolf subspecies (C.l. hodophylax and C.l. attai), Japan now holds the dubious distinction of having wiped out both its native subspecies. Traditionally revered throughout the nation, deification of the wolf most probably owed to its role as an exterminator of agricultural pests (Fritts et al. 2003). The transition from Shogun to Western rule in the mid 1800s brought about a sudden and drastic change in attitudes and practices regarding wildlife and agriculture. Reflecting Western views of wolves as dangerous vermin, recommendations were made by the new ruling power to poison wolves (Walker 2005). Accelerated by a rabies epidemic at the beginning of the century, both subspecies were extinct by 1910. In recent times, with a global shift towards environmental accountability and conservation, the re- introduction of wolves in Japan is being considered (Knight 2003). In North America, wolves were commonly trapped for fur by a number of native American peoples prior to European settlement, and sometimes killed to reduce competition for scarce prey (Fritts et al. 2003). Nevertheless, wolves were generally respected and sometimes even revered. Large-scale wolf exterminations did not begin until Europeans, who had faced problems with wolf depredation in the Old World, settled on the continent. Apart from being viewed as threats to their livestock, wolves rapidly became a symbol of the worst aspects of the unknown, untamed New World wilderness (Fritts et al. 2003). The widespread over-hunting of native ungulate prey coupled with rapid increase in livestock numbers further forced wolves into contact with humans. Bounties were

Load more