Utility of a psychological framework for carnivore conservation

Abstract

Conserving threatened carnivore species increasingly depends on the capacity of local people to cohabit with those species. To examine such capacity we developed a novel psychological framework for conservation in regions of the world where there are human-carnivore conflicts, and used the Endangered tiger Panthera tigris to explore the utility of this framework. Specifically, we tested three hypotheses in Chitwan National Park, Nepal, where increasing human-tiger conflicts potentially jeopardize long-term coexistence. We administered a survey to 499 individuals living , 2 km from the Park and in nearby multiple-use forest, to record preferred future tiger population size and factors that may influence preferences, including past interactions with tigers (e.g. livestock predation) and beliefs and perceptions about tigers. Over 17% of respondents reported that a tiger had attacked their livestock or threatened them directly. Results from a structural equation model indicated that respondents who preferred fewer tigers in the future were less likely to associate tigers with beneficial attributes, more likely to associate tigers with undesirable attributes, and more likely to believe that government officials poorly manage tiger-related risks and that people are vulnerable to risks from tigers. Our framework can help address current and future conservation challenges because it (1) integrates an expansive and generalized set of psychological concepts, (2) enables the identification of conservation interventions that foster coexistence between people and carnivores, and (3) is suitable for broad application.

Community Opinions about African Wild Dog Conservation and Relocations near the Serengeti National Park, Tanzania

“…The majority of the local people have attained formal education and has the ability to exchange conservation knowledge among themselves. Similarly, relationship between education level and conservation priority attitudes towards large carnivores has been reported previously (Bhatia, Redpath, Suryawanshi, & Mishra, 2016;Carter, Riley, & Liu, 2012;Lagendijk & Gusset, 2008;Lindsey et al, 2005;Parker et al, 2014;Røskaft et al, 2007). The educated respondents have the possibility to watch television, read newspapers and books which might also be important means of obtaining information regarding wild dogs, which again increases the awareness of local people about wild dog conservation priorities.…”

“…As previously reported, gender plays an important role in the perception of conservation of wild canids (Bhatia et al, 2016;Carter et al, 2012;Lindsey et al, 2005;Liu et al, 2011;Treves & Karanth, 2003). However, the presence of wild dogs in the areas has limited benefits to local people, which may contribute to the positive suggestions of relocating the dogs to the park.…”

Reply to Goswami et al., Harihar et al., and Karanth et al.: Fine-scale interactions between tigers and people

“…4, page 15360). In another recent study we investigated the complex cognitions and emotions people have toward tigers to help mitigate tiger-human conflict in Chitwan (13). Tiger-human coexistence at fine scales does not mean there are no tiger-human conflicts at other scales or at other locations.…”

Coupled human and natural systems approach to wildlife research and conservation

“…Ecology and Society 19(3): 43 http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol19/iss3/art43/ of respondents to a recent survey in Chitwan acknowledged that tigers were there before people and have the right to live alongside people (Carter et al 2012a). …”

“…The disappearance of wildlife and their habitats entails the degradation of life-sustaining ecosystem services such as the availability of medicines, control of pests and diseases, and provision of clean water and air (De Groot et al 2002). Moreover, because people worldwide value nature for numerous reasons (e.g., aesthetic, cultural, religious, economic, educational), the loss of wildlife and their habitats diminishes humans' quality of life (Manfredo et al 2009, Carter et al 2012a). …”