As natural areas become increasingly fragmented, the potential for humans and wildlife to interact is growing.
As natural areas become increasingly fragmented, the potential for humans and wildlife to interact is growing. Now, researchers from Japan have found that climate change is altering the risk of such interactions.
In a recent study published in Science of the Total Environment, researchers from the Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo, examined how the risk of human-elephant conflict could change over time. When humans encroach on natural landscapes, the chances of interactions with wildlife increase. Conflicts can arise when wildlife damages livestock or crops, or when human activities damage animal habitat. For example, forest edges are particularly attractive areas for elephants on the hunt for food, which can bring them into contact with mature crops, or with farmers.
"In Thailand, half of the country's population live in rural areas and rely on agriculture," says lead author Nuntikorn Kitratporn. "Thailand also has about three to four thousand wild elephants and deforestation and the growth of commercial agriculture have pushed elephants into increasingly fragmented patches of habitat, increasing the chance of interactions between humans and elephants."
Read more at: Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo
Researchers from the Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo, find that the risk of human–elephant conflict in Thailand is likely to shift with climate change (Photo Credit: Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo)
