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CARACAL Conflict
Program- Key
Components:
Community Map of Elephant Conflict Mabele, Botswana
Girls collecting
water: women have greater household chore burdens complicating time budgets
and wildlife mitigation options for female headed households and property
owners.
Predator Movements
Chobe National Park
Predators
move large
distances in and out of protected areas complicating conservation strategies.
Satellite collars allow us to track predators and identify their location
twice time daily regardless of how far they move. Above is a map showing a
composite of locations (dots) from two prides of lions and one leopard in
Chobe National Park over a period of two months. One of the lion prides and
the leopard have been moving out of the Park and into the nearby village Lesoma.
They are even traveling into neighboring countries such as Namibia and Zimbabwe.
DMC
International Imaging
Science Projects
Evaluating Human Elephant Conflict in Northern Botswana
using DMC Imagery, Census Data and Spatial Models.
Human Wildlife Conflicts
are escalating
and have become a significant issue in conservation and land management. Human
population growth coupled with wealth creation and agricultural intensification
has led to an expansion of human activity, the fragmentation of natural habitats
and as a consequence, restricted the distribution and movement of wild animal
species. This in turn has led to direct conflicts between wildlife and humans,
intensifying negative attitudes towards wildlife and undermining community
based conservation initiatives. Without question the causes of this biological
interaction and the social response of humans is a critical issue facing wildlife
conservation over the next 10 to 20 years. Indeed a number of conservation
organization believe that the outcome of this conflict will have a major impact
on the future distribution and diversity of wildlife populations in developing
continents such as Africa.
In
2001, through a collaborative team of researchers from partner institutions
and the Department of Wildlife and National Parks in Botswana, CARACAL initiated
a research program aimed at addressing holistically the management challenge
of community conflict with wildlife. In order to fully understand conflict,
it is our belief that a multidimensional approach must be taken. This approach
must include the identification of the ecological determinants, which influence
the spatial, and temporal distribution patterns of conflict incidence and
target species distribution, the community impacts and development of mechanisms
for empowering communities to address conflict in partnership with management
authorities.
Participatory
GIS
The
pilot phase of this project was conducted in two villages in the Chobe Enclave
next to Chobe National Park, Parakarungu and Mabele. These communities worked
hard with project staff in developing participatory GIS maps of conflict and
strategies for mitigation. Participatory GIS is a tool which allows communities
through assistance of project staff to identify the spatial attributes of
conflict through mapping activities. These maps which identify community areas
of importance are used to identify a shared perception of the problem and
consensus on mitigation options and action.
Impact
of Gender on Human Wildlife Conflict
One
of the weaknesses of wildlife conflict investigation and management strategy
is the tendency to address "the community" as a homogenous group while in
fact; different categories of households might require different considerations.
CARACAL is conducting research on the impact of gender on conflict and implications
to mitigation options and poverty reduction strategy in biodiversity rich
areas where conflict is the highest.
Human-Elephant
Conflict in Northern Botswana
Nowhere
is the human-wildlife conflict more serious than in the current conflicts
between humans and elephants in Africa. Currently, 80% of the elephants' range
is outside protected areas and this habitat is rapidly being eliminated and
fragmented by agricultural intensification. Elephants damage crops, infrastructure
and injure people leading to a view of elephants that is far more hostile
than any other wildlife species. At the same time this negative attitude is
fueling the demand for conversion of natural habitats to intensive agricultural
systems. This is critically damaging to wildlife conservation programs in
general and the identification of sustainable utilization of wildlife as a
key opportunity in poverty reduction strategy in biodiversity rich rural areas.
A recent review of elephant conflict identified the lack of quantitative,
systematic data on crop damage such that detailed analyses of conflict have
been limited in many countries. However, in Botswana, the Government has compensated
elephant damage throughout a range of land use types since 1994. Therefore,
details of conflict are rigorously investigated and recorded throughout the
range of elephants permitting a unique analysis of elephant conflict. In collaboration
with DWNP, CARACAL is investigating long term elephant conflict and population
dynamics in Northern Botswana from 1994-2004.
Predator
Conflict with Communities
Community
conflict with predators is escalating particularily for communities living
next to protected area net works. Predators such as lions often kill numerous
animals in one raid and strongly impact household economic security. We are
working closely with communities to better understand how conflict effects
their lives and what options are available to prevent loss and conserve large
predators such as lion leopard, hyena and cheetah. Through an analyses of
conflict incidence from 1994-2002 in Northern Botswana, we are beginning to
understand patterns of loss and the implications of current husbandry practices.
We aim through innovative science and strong environmental education to address
predator conflict with communities and develop realistic mediation strategies
which promote conservation of predators while addressing the needs of people.
Traditional
Knowledge and Scientific Research
Traditional
knowledge is often identified as an important source of information in environmental
management. However, active use of this information is limited and the importance
of this information is often only highlighted in principal but limited in
practice. CARACAL, together with communities, is identifying ways in which
traditional knowledge can be accumulated and integrated with standard scientific
approaches.
Using
Remote Sensing and Modeling in assessing community conflict with wildlife
As
part of a collaborative initiative with Kings College, we are using DMC high
resolution remote sensing imagery to map and monitor all the main environmental
controls on species abundance and distribution. The DMC sensor can efficiently
image the entire elephant range in Northern Botswana in one orbital pass.
No other sensor can do this with equivalent spatial and temporal resolution.
This data is coupled with conflict incidence through complex modeling approaches
to better understand the environmental determinants of conflict and implications
to mitigation.
CARACAL Scientists
Penn
State University
Kings
College, London
Chobe National
Park has one of the most diverse large Predator Populations in Africa. These
predators, however, leave the security of the Park and venture into surrounding
Villages where they kill livestock. Many of these animals are killed by communities
fighting to keep what little resources they have to secure food for their
families.
The
spotted hyena is a primary conflict species in Northern Botswana
Remote
Sensing and Participatory GIS -Elephant Conflict in Mabele Village, Botswana
Elephant
Population Trends 1980 - 2004 (DWNP Aerial Survey Data and others)
June 12, 2006
