Crop raiding by wild mammals in Ethiopia: impacts on the livelihoods of smallholders in an agriculture–forest mosaic landscape

Abstract

We assessed the impacts of crop raiding by wild mammals on the livelihoods of smallholding farmers in south-western Ethiopia. Data were generated through participatory field mapping, interviews and focus groups. The results indicated that wild mammals, mainly olive baboons Papio anubis and bush pigs Potamochoerus larvatus, were raiding most crops cultivated in villages close to forests. In addition to the loss of crops, farmers incurred indirect costs in having to guard and cultivate plots far from their residences, sometimes at the expense of their children's schooling. Raiding also undermined farmers’ willingness to invest in modern agricultural technologies. Various coping strategies, including guarding crops and adapting existing local institutions, were insufficient to reduce raiding and its indirect impacts on household economies to tolerable levels, and were undermined by existing policies and government institutions. It is essential to recognize wild mammal pests as a critical ecosystem disservice to farmers, and to identify ways to mitigate their direct and indirect costs, to facilitate local agricultural development and livelihood security, and integrate wildlife conservation and local development more fully in agriculture–forest mosaic landscapes.

Farmers perceptions of the effectiveness of strategies for managing wildlife crop depredation in Ghana

“…They provide benefits to close communities, including income and employment through tourism (MacKenzie et al, 2017). However, their creation has also resulted in issues such as displacement of local communities, loss of extraction rights, losses due to wildlife interferences with livelihoods, inadequate compensation for losses, and human fatalities resulting from human-wildlife interactions (Namukonde and Kachalic, 2015;Ango et al, 2017). Among these, crop depredation by wildlife is a primary driver of humanwildlife conflicts (HWCs) around protected areas (Salerno Goswami et al, 2015;Anand and Radhakrishna, 2017).…”

“…Studies on crop depredation are extensive and diverse. The central focus of some studies has been to investigate the patterns and spatiotemporal correlates of crop damage so as to better inform conflict management strategies (Hsiao et al, 2013;Karanth et al, 2013;Ango et al, 2017). Other studies have focused on economics (Kaswamila et al, 2007;Mackenzie and Ahabyona, 2012), benefits, problems and solutions (MacKenzie et al, 2017), vulnerability of farming to crop depredation and the technical effectiveness of management strategies through field verification (Vollrath and Douglas-Hamilton, 2002;King et al, 2009).…”

“…Some focus on strategies, including lethal control such as regulated hunting in developed countries where legislation is strong (Bisi et al, 2007;Strum, 2010), and selective removal of identified problem animals through government intervention (Gurung et al, 2008). Other studies report of strategies such as increasing the size of buffer zones, fencing, human patrols, use of scares and repellents, and barriers (McGuinness and Taylor, 2014;Ango et al, 2017). Particularly, small-scale farmers in Africa use strategies such as crop guarding, hunting, burning, traps, snares, hedges, use of dogs and bees as an "eco-deterrent" against wildlife depredation (Hill, 2000;Vollrath and Douglas-Hamilton, 2002;Sitati et al, 2005).…”

“Medium-Scale” Forestland Grabbing in the Southwestern Highlands of Ethiopia: Impacts on Local Livelihoods and Forest Conservation

“…When following up on court cases, including bringing cases to the Ethiopian Institution of the Ombudsman-Oromia Branch Office, farmers incurred financial costs for transportation and accommodation in towns. They also claimed that the time lost for such efforts resulted in crop raids by wild mammals [78] and the neglect of important farm work, such as ploughing and weeding.…”

“…Such customary rights are still respected by farmers. Other common mechanisms used by farmers to gain access to forest resources were inheritance/gifts of customary rights from relatives living in the coffee-growing zone, crop sharing locally known as yekuto [78] and informal land purchases. All these mechanisms were important to varying degrees for farmers living in villages far from the forest and/or above the coffee-growing zone.…”