Effectiveness of animal conditioning interventions in reducing human–wildlife conflict: a systematic map protocol

Snijders, Lysanne; Greggor, Alison L.; Hilderink, Femke; Doran, Carolina

doi:10.1186/s13750-019-0153-7

Cited by 25 publications

(21 citation statements)

References 57 publications

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“…Moreover, increased human population growth, conversion of elephant habitat to agriculture, and resulting conflict means there currently is not enough wild space to release the ~3700 captive elephants in Thailand. A growing number of new approaches have been used to reduce the chances of subsequent human-wildlife conflict of rewilded animals, e.g., radio telemetry, sterilization and fertility controls, and modifying the behavior of problem animals long-term (see review, Nyhus [ 99 ], Snijders et al [ 100 ]). Taking animal behavior into consideration is key for successful wildlife reintroductions, particularly that related to social behavior [ 101 ].…”

Section: Recommendations For the Futurementioning

confidence: 99%

Welfare Assessment and Activities of Captive Elephants in Thailand

Bansiddhi

Brown

Thitaram

2020

Animals

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Thailand is the epicenter of elephant tourism and visiting an elephant camp is a popular activity according to the Tourist Authority of Thailand. However, the welfare of these elephants has been questioned by animal activist groups, international tour operators, and the public. Conclusions that the vast majority of captive elephants are abused often are based on anecdotal evidence and not solid science. So, it is difficult to tease apart emotion, opinion, and fact with regard to what practices are good or bad for elephant welfare. The aim of this paper was to: (1) describe the unique status of captive elephants in Thailand and associated regulations, (2) summarize current issues and challenges facing elephant tourism, (3) review studies conducted on welfare of tourist elephants in Thailand, and (4) offer recommendations for how elephants can be properly cared for under captive conditions in tourist camps. We conclude there are many ways to manage these elephants, and that not all tourist activities are bad for welfare. However, it is essential they be managed in a way that meets physical, physiological and psychological needs, and that management decisions are based on objective data.

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Section: Recommendations For the Futurementioning

confidence: 99%

Welfare Assessment and Activities of Captive Elephants in Thailand

Bansiddhi

Brown

Thitaram

2020

Animals

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“…If designed treatment and control samples are unlikely to be similar, it is most reasonable to expect the treatment sample to be smaller than the control sample due to significant efforts and resources invested to the process of treatment (Eklund et al, 2017;Snijders et al, 2019). This was confirmed by the first three case studies where sample sizes were determined by researchers (Knarrum et al, 2006;Sampaio, 2018;Newell, 2019).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

A comparison of common metrics used to quantify the effectiveness of conservation interventions

Khorozyan¹

2020

PeerJ

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Background Evidence-based conservation is urgently needed to identify, apply and promote effective interventions for mitigation of threats and recovery of the natural environment. Estimation of intervention effectiveness is subject to robust study design and statistical analysis, and much progress is documented in these fields. In contrast, little is understood about the accuracy and biases (underestimation and overestimation) of different effectiveness metrics and how they are affected by sample size. Methods In this study, a dataset (n = 500 cases) consisting of random, positive, integer numbers was simulated to produce frequency input data for the 2 × 2 contingency table. For each case, three metrics of the relative risk, odds ratio and the magnitude of change were calculated, their disparity was estimated and the characteristics of treatment (with intervention) and control (without intervention) samples significantly affecting this disparity were studied by means of linear regression. Further, four case studies from different conservation interventions are provided to support the results. Results The study has shown that the relative risk and the magnitude of change produce identical estimates of intervention effectiveness only when treatment and control samples are equal, or when the number of target outcomes (e.g., number of livestock killed by predators) in treatment sample reaches zero. In other situations, the magnitude of change gives overestimates or underestimates, depending on relationships between treatment and control sample sizes. The table summarizing the conditions of equalities and biases between these two metrics is provided. These conditions are valid for both reduction-aimed interventions reducing negative target outcomes (e.g., livestock protection to reduce livestock losses to predators) and for addition-aimed interventions increasing positive target outcomes (e.g., establishment of protected areas to increase species presence). No significant effects on the odds ratio were found. Conclusion Researchers should set equal treatment and control sample sizes so that to produce identical estimates of intervention effectiveness by the relative risk and the magnitude of change. Otherwise, these estimates are biased if produced by the magnitude of change and the relative risk should be used instead. As setting equal treatment and control samples can be impractical, I encourage researchers and practitioners to use the relative risk in estimation of intervention effectiveness. This will not take additional efforts as both metrics are calculated from the same contingency table. Treatment and control sample sizes, along with their sub-samples affected and not by an intervention, should be explicitly reported by researchers to allow independent evaluation of intervention effectiveness. This approach can help obtain more accurate information on intervention effectiveness for making better decisions in conservation actions.

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“…Ogada et al 2003 , Warren 2009 , Fehlmann et al 2017b , 10–12. Swan et al 2017 , Snijders et al 2019 , 11. Massei and Cowan 2014 , 12.…”

Section: The Challenge Of Managing Wildlife Foraging In Human-modifiementioning

confidence: 99%

Behavioral Causes, Ecological Consequences, and Management Challenges Associated with Wildlife Foraging in Human-Modified Landscapes

et al. 2020

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Humans have altered up to half of the world's land surface. Wildlife living within or close to these human-modified landscapes are presented with opportunities and risks associated with feeding on human-derived foods (e.g., agricultural crops and food waste). Understanding whether and how wildlife adapts to these landscapes is a major challenge, with thousands of studies published on the topic over the past 10 years. In the present article, we build on established theoretical frameworks to understand the behavioral causes of crop and urban foraging by wildlife. We then develop and extend this framework to describe the multifaceted ecological consequences of crop and urban foraging for the individuals and populations in which they arise, with emphasis on social species for which interactions with people are, on balance, negative (commonly referred to as raiding species). Finally, we discuss the management challenges faced by urban and rural land managers, businesses, and government organizations in mitigating human–wildlife conflicts and propose ways to improve the lives of both wildlife and humans living in human-modified landscapes and to promote coexistence.

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Effectiveness of animal conditioning interventions in reducing human–wildlife conflict: a systematic map protocol

Cited by 25 publications

References 57 publications

Welfare Assessment and Activities of Captive Elephants in Thailand

Welfare Assessment and Activities of Captive Elephants in Thailand

A comparison of common metrics used to quantify the effectiveness of conservation interventions

Behavioral Causes, Ecological Consequences, and Management Challenges Associated with Wildlife Foraging in Human-Modified Landscapes

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