Human–wildlife conflict (HWC) refers to the negative interactions between humans and wild animals, with undesirable consequences both for people and their resources on the one hand, and wildlife and their habitats on the other. HWC, caused by competition for natural resources between human and wildlife, influences human food security and the well-being of both humans and other animals. In many regions, the number of these conflicts has increased in recent decades as a result of human population growth and the transformation of land use.
HWC is a serious global threat to sustainable development, food security and conservation in urban and rural landscapes alike. In general, the consequences of HWC include: crop destruction, reduced agricultural productivity, competition for grazing lands and water supply, livestock predation, injury and death to human, damage to infrastructure, and increased risk of disease transmission among wildlife and livestock.
As of 2013, many countries have started to explicitly include human-wildlife conflict in national policies and strategies for wildlife management, development and poverty alleviation. At the national level, collaboration between forestry, wildlife, agriculture, livestock and other relevant sectors is key.
As of 2020, conflict mitigation strategies utilized lethal control, translocation, population size regulation and endangered species preservation. Recent management now uses an interdisciplinary set of approaches to solving conflicts. These include applying scientific research, sociological studies and the arts to reducing conflicts. As human-wildlife conflict inflicts direct and indirect consequences on people and animals, its mitigation is an important priority for the management of biodiversity and protected areas. Resolving human-wildlife conflicts and fostering coexistence requires well-informed, holistic and collaborative processes that take into account underlying social, cultural and economic contexts.
Coexistence Specialist Group published the IUCN SSC Guidelines on human-wildlife conflict and coexistence that aim to provide foundations and principles for good practice, with clear, practical guidance on how best to tackle conflicts and enable coexistence with wildlife.
Meaning Human–wildlife conflict has been defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) in 2004 as "any interaction between humans and wildlife that results in negative impacts of human social, economic or cultural life, on the conservation of wildlife populations, or on the environment".SARPO, WWF. "Human wildlife conflict manual." Harare, Zimbabwe, WWF Southern African Regional Programme Office (SARPO) (2005). The Creating Co-existence workshop at the 5th Annual World Parks Congress (8–17 September 2003, Montreal) defined human-wildlife conflict in the context of human goals and animal needs as follows: "Human-wildlife conflict occurs when the needs and behavior of wildlife impact negatively on the goals of humans or when the goals of humans negatively impact the needs of wildlife."Madden, Francine (2004). "Creating Coexistence between Humans and Wildlife: Global Perspectives on Local Efforts to Address Human–Wildlife Conflict" (PDF). Human Dimensions of Wildlife. Taylor & Francis Inc. 9 (4): 247–257. doi:10.1080/10871200490505675. ISSN 1087-1209. Retrieved 17 July 2013.
A 2007 review by the United States Geological Survey defined human-wildlife conflict in two contexts; firstly, actions by wildlife conflict with human goals i.e. life, livelihood and life-style, and secondly, human activities that threaten the safety and survival of wildlife. However, in both cases outcomes are decided by human responses to the interactions.Cline, R.; Sexton, N.; Stewart, S.C. (2007). A human-dimensions review of human-wildlife disturbance: a literature review of impacts, frameworks, and management solutions(PDF) (Report). U.S. Geological Survey. p. 2. Open-File Report 2007-1111. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 March 2014. Retrieved 20 July 2013.
The Government of Yukon defined human-wildlife conflict simply, but through the lens of damage to property, i.e. "any interaction between wildlife and humans which causes harm, whether it's to the human, the wild animal, or property." Here, property includes buildings, equipment and camps, livestock and pets, but does not include crops, fields or fences.
In 2020, the IUCN SSC Human-Wildlife Conflict Task Force described human-wildlife conflict as "struggles that emerge when the presence or behaviour of wildlife poses actual or perceived, direct and recurring threat to human interests or needs, leading to disagreements between groups of people and negative impacts on people and/or wildlife".
History Human-wildlife interactions have occurred throughout man's prehistory and recorded history. An early form of human-wildlife conflict is the depredation of the ancestors of prehistoric man by a number of predators of the Miocene such as saber-toothed cats, leopards, and spotted hyenas.Smilie, Shaun (20 May 2002). "Killer Cats Hunted Human Ancestors". National Geographic News. National Geographic Society. Archived from the original on 16 March 2014. Retrieved 19 July 2013.
Fossil remains of early hominids show evidence of depredation; the Taung Child, the fossilized skull of a young Australopithecus africanus, is thought to have been killed by an eagle from the distinct marks on its skull and the fossil having been found among egg shells and remains of small animals."Taung Child". What does it mean to be human?. Smithsonian Institution. Retrieved 18 July 2013.
A Plio-Pleistocene horned crocodile, Crocodylus anthropophagus, whose fossil remains have been recorded from Olduvai Gorge, was the largest predator encountered by prehistoric man, as indicated by hominid specimens preserving crocodile bite marks from these sites.Brochu, Christopher A.; Njau, Jackson; Blumenschine, Robert J.; Densmore, Llewellyn D. (2010). "A New Horned Crocodile from the Plio-Pleistocene Hominid Sites at Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania". PLOS ONE. 5 (2): e9333. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0009333.PMC 2827537. PMID 20195356.
In 2023 alone, over 1.8 million distinct human-wildlife conflicts occurred as animal involved auto accidents on roadways, seen as roadkill. Understanding bird strike frequency is important to Aircraft safety engineers. Reducing the frequent animal collisions (strikes) from automobiles on roadways are shared concerns of biologists, civil engineers, and automobile safety designers.
As of 2020, with specific reference to forests, a high density of large ungulates such as deer, can cause severe damage to the vegetation and can threaten regeneration by trampling or browsing small trees, rubbing themselves on trees or stripping tree bark. This behavior can have important economic implications and can lead to polarization between forest and wildlife managers.
Examples
By species Feral cat Feral cat in New Zealand have become a major driver of native wildlife decline, prompting the government to include them in its Predator Free 2050 program.
Sparrow During the Four Pests campaign in Maoist China (1958–1960), the Eurasian tree sparrow was targeted for extermination due to its consumption of grain and seeds. Massive culling efforts—including nest destruction, egg breaking, and widespread hunting by citizens—led to a near-extinction of sparrows in China. The campaign caused severe ecological disruption, contributing to locust outbreaks, decreased crop yields, and part of the Great Chinese Famine, resulting in millions of human deaths.
Rabbits European Rabbits in Australia were introduced to Australia in the 18th century. Thomas Austin's release of a small number of rabbits in 1859 led to a population explosion, causing severe ecological damage and agricultural losses. Control measures have included shooting, destroying warrens, fencing, and biological control such as the myxoma virus and rabbit hemorrhagic disease (RHD).
Monkey Agricultural expansion push rhesus macaques into human settlements. In Nepal and India, crop raiding causes significant financial losses and negative perceptions of macaques, leading to actions such as culling and management programs.
By continent
Africa As a tropical continent with substantial anthropogenic development, Africa is a hotspot for biodiversityMyers, N., Mittermeier, R. A., Mittermeier, C. G., Da Fonseca, G. A., & Kent, J. (2000). Biodiversity hotspots for conservation priorities. Nature, 403(6772), 853. and therefore, for human-wildlife conflict. Two of the primary examples of conflict in Africa are human-predator (lions, leopards, cheetahs, etc.) and human-elephant conflict. Depredation of livestock by African predators is well documented in Kenya,Manoa, David Owino, and Francis Mwaura. "Predator-Proof Bomas as a Tool in Mitigating Human-Predator Conflict in Loitokitok Sub-County Amboseli Region of Kenya." Natural Resources 7, no. 01 (2016): 28. Namibia,Marker, Laurie L., and Lorraine K. Boast. "Human–wildlife conflict 10 years later: lessons learned and their application to cheetah conservation." Human Dimensions of Wildlife 20, no. 4 (2015): 302-309. Botswana,Muir 1, 2, Matthew J. "Human–predator conflict and livestock depredations: Methodological challenges for wildlife research and policy in Botswana." Journal of International Wildlife Law & Policy 13, no. 4 (2010): 293-310. and more. African elephants frequently clash with humans, as their long-distance migrations often intersect with farms. The resulting damage to crops, infrastructure, and at times, people, can lead to the retaliatory killing of elephants by locals.Graham, Maximilian D., Benedikt Notter, William M. Adams, Phyllis C. Lee, and Tobias Nyumba Ochieng. "Patterns of crop-raiding by elephants, Loxodonta africana, in Laikipia, Kenya, and the management of human–elephant conflict." Systematics and Biodiversity 8, no. 4 (2010): 435-445.
In 2017, more than 8,000 human-wildlife conflict incidents were reported in Namibia alone (World Bank, 2019). Hyenas killed more than 600 cattle in the Zambezi Region of Namibia between 2011 and 2016 and there were more than 4,000 incidents of crop damage, mostly caused by elephants moving through the region (NACSO, 2017a).
Asia With a rapidly increasing human population and high biodiversity, interactions between people and wild animals are becoming more and more prevalent. Like human-predator in Africa, encounters between tigers, people, and their livestock is a prominent issue on the Asian continent. Attacks on humans and livestock have exacerbated major threats to tiger conservation such as mortality, removal of individuals from the wild, and negative perceptions of the animals from locals.Goodrich, John M. "Human–tiger conflict: a review and call for comprehensive plans." Integrative Zoology 5, no. 4 (2010): 300-312. Even non-predator conflicts are common, with crop-raiding by elephantsDesai, Ajay A., and Heidi S. Riddle. "Human-elephant conflict in Asia." Supported by: US Fish and Wildlife Service Asian Elephant Support (2015): 10-12. and macaquesPriston, Nancy EC, and Matthew R. McLennan. "Managing humans, managing macaques: Human–macaque conflict in Asia and Africa." In The macaque connection, pp. 225-250. Springer, New York, NY, 2013. persisting in both rural and urban environments, respectively. Poor disposal of hotel waste in tourism-dominated towns have altered behaviours of carnivores such as sloth bears that usually avoid human habitation and human-generated garbage.