The extent of crop damage by elephants: Does the distance from the protected area matter?

Abstract

AbstractStudies on human–elephant conflicts have been conducted extensively in Africa and Asia. However, few of them have attempted to assess the variation in the area destroyed by elephants (Loxodonta africana) per farm with respect to their distance from protected area and the crops being grown. Thus, we assessed the area destroyed by elephants per farm and how that area varies according to both distance from protected area and crop type in four villages adjacent to the Kijereshi Game Reserve in the Busega district, Tanzania. We obtained data on crop damage caused by elephants from the Busega District Council and used a generalized linear model with inverse gamma distribution for analysis. For three villages, the crop area damaged by elephants decreased with increase in distance from protected area boundary while for one village where beehive fencing has been installed it was the opposite. Furthermore, we found that the area destroyed by elephants per farm varies per crops grown, with farms growing green gram and cotton being destroyed to a greater extent than farms growing other crops. Our findings suggest that apart from applying human–elephant conflict mitigations, local inhabitants should avoid cultivating crops in locations close to protected areas.