Identifying human–brown bear conflict hotspots for prioritizing critical habitat and corridor conservation in southwestern Iran

Abstract

Multiple studies have used species distribution models to identify human-wildlife conflict drivers. An important application of these models is spatial conflict resolution by accounting for habitat suitability and corridors. We used distribution and connectivity models to identify habitats and corridors for brown bear Ursus arctos in southwestern Iran with high risk of bear damages, and evaluated the effects of landscape composition and configuration on the predicted conflict hotspots. We used 154 locations of bear damage incidents along with a suit of predictors to develop risk models. To prepare predictive variables, we used brown bear occurrence data and a number of covariates to develop a suitability model. We then converted the suitability map into a resistance surface and used a connectivity model to predict corridors. Finally, the bear damages risk map, habitats and corridors were overlaid to prioritize conflict hotspots, corridors and habitats, and conflict-prone corridors. Proportion of suitable habitats, distance to village, density of forest patches, conservation areas and corridor bottlenecks were the main predictors contributing to bear damages risk. A total of 38.73% of habitats, and 6.24% of corridors across the 124 000-km 2 study area were identified as areas with high risk of bear damages. The risk of bear damage was also spatially associated with forests fragmentation and patchiness of habitat. Our results highlight the importance of landscape configuration and corridors when investigating the spatial patterns of bear damages. Our findings showed how the combination of distribution models and connectivity analysis can guide carnivore conservation planning aiming at reducing the risk of carnivore-inflicted damages.

Assessing the spatial-temporal patterns of conflicts between humans and Asiatic black bears (Ursus thibetanus) around the Gaoligongshan Nature Reserve, China

“…Aside from the composition of landscape, the configuration, i.e., the spatial organization of the landscape elements, can also determine the bears' behavior, and hence HBC (Linke et al, 2005;Boudreau et al, 2022). We found that HBC are more likely to occur in fragmented forests, as found elsewhere (Bombieri et al, 2018;Khosravi et al, 2022). These fragmented forests typically contain smaller, separated habitat areas with reduced natural food availability.…”

“…The availability of anthropogenic food (i.e., crops, livestock, and honey) is significantly related to HBC occurrences (Merkle et al, 2013;Huang et al, 2018). Furthermore, landscape composition and configuration can determine the availability and access to resources, affecting bears' behaviors and humanbear interactions (Tee et al, 2021;Khosravi et al, 2022). As found previously, HBC is more likely to occur in landscapes characterized by a complex mosaic of forest habitat patches (Boudreau et al, 2022;Khosravi et al, 2022).…”

“…These fragmented forests typically contain smaller, separated habitat areas with reduced natural food availability. Bears must increase their home ranges, frequently travel between patches, and even move into the surrounding human landscape for food (Khosravi et al, 2022). Additionally, the increased edge density from forest fragmentation can prompt bears to enter these unfavorable habitats (Klees et al, 2020).…”

“…Furthermore, landscape composition and configuration can determine the availability and access to resources, affecting bears' behaviors and humanbear interactions (Tee et al, 2021;Khosravi et al, 2022). As found previously, HBC is more likely to occur in landscapes characterized by a complex mosaic of forest habitat patches (Boudreau et al, 2022;Khosravi et al, 2022). Therefore, conflict mitigation efforts should consider the effects of these factors on HBC.…”

Human-brown bear conflicts in Türkiye are driven by increased human presence around protected areas

“…However, we still have little to no information on the pattern and distribution of conflict events across Türkiye and our understanding of the factors that drive or increase conflict risks remains poor. Spatial information on human-brown bear conflicts (HBCs) can help us understand the ecological and anthropogenic factors responsible for these conflicts (Broekhuis et al, 2017) and develop conservation and management strategies to reduce HBCs (Hosseini et al, 2021; Khosravi et al, 2023). Therefore, the aim of this study was to quantify the spatial and temporal trends and determine the social and ecological dynamics of HBCs in Türkiye and outline bear conservation actions that can minimize these conflicts.…”