Managing Human-Tiger Conflict
Human-tiger conflict is highly context specific. Different locations will experience different challenges, and these challenges will vary over time. For example, between 1976 and 1997 HTC in Chitwan National park, Nepal, resulted in an average of 1.2 human deaths per year. However, this rose considerably to 7.2 human deaths per year between 1998 and 2006 (Gurung et al, 2008). Meanwhile, in Bangladesh, the Sundarbans reserve has always been a hotspot for human attacks, recording an average of 22 deaths per year, between 1935 and 2006 (Barlow et al., 2013). In the Russian Far East HTC resulting in human fatalities rarely rises above 1 per year (Goodrich et al, 2011a).
There are multiple factors at play in this variation including the type and condition of habitat, surrounding land use patterns, availability of prey, socioeconomic factors, human densities and tiger numbers.
Management strategies must therefore be tailored to individual situations and incorporated into a comprehensive plan. Such a plan should be regularly reviewed and developed in consultation with local stakeholders. There are four key areas for consideration:
- Preventative measures which aim to reduce the frequency and severity of conflict, before it occurs
- Interventions: responding to active conflict
- Mitigation measures aimed at reducing the impact of conflict and easing tensions after the event
- Community engagement – ensuring the local community accepts the plan and that it meets their needs