Abstract
Conservation faces the challenge of reconciling human activities with the simultaneous presence of wildlife in cultivated landscapes. In a study carried out in two villages of Pauri Garhwal, Western Himalaya, an attempt was made to estimate biomass and associated carbon loss due to removal of agroforestry tree species to reduce human-animal interactions. The results revealed that tree removal caused substantial biomass loss (7.370–2.444 t ha−1) and carbon loss (3.444–15.137 t ha−1) in the village of Manjgaon and Mald Bada, respectively. This indicates a need for protection of existing forests and for tree planting through reforestation and afforestation, as a measure to support food stock for monkeys in their natural habitats and to enhance carbon sequestration capacity. The success of these management practices will depend on the potential to minimise human-animal interactions, especially at the fringes of village communities and agricultural landscapes.
Highlights
Human-wildlife interactions due to competition for food and resources are widespread and have already imposed severe losses of wildlife and of some people, and even extinction of many species (Artelle et al, 2016; Nyhus, 2016)
The growing human population and associated expansion of human habitat commonly results in interactions with wild animals in nearby forest areas (Daniel, 2009; Shukla and Kumar, 2002)
Among various risks faced by rural communities, crop damage due to wild animals is the most prevalent in Africa and the Asian sub-continent (Rohini et al, 2016; Wong et al, 2015)
Summary
Human-wildlife interactions due to competition for food and resources are widespread and have already imposed severe losses of wildlife and of some people, and even extinction of many species (Artelle et al, 2016; Nyhus, 2016). In many parts of the developing world, wild animals inhabit landscapes beyond reserves, leading to conflict with local communities and encroaching on many jurisdictional areas (Hartter et al, 2011; Inskip and Zimmermann, 2009). Such incidents may pose a risk to life of people living in the vicinity of protected areas (Dunham et al, 2010; Silwal et al, 2017). They can directly affect the overall availability of food for families or communities (Ogra, 2008). Other major consequences of human-animal interactions are loss of life and livestock damage by wild animals, which significantly affects people’s livelihood and their food and farm security (Barua et al, 2013)
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