The human-elephant conflict in Sri Lanka: history and present status
Article
Article Title | The human-elephant conflict in Sri Lanka: history and present status |
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ERA Journal ID | 3210 |
Article Category | Article |
Authors | Gunawansa, Thakshila, Perera, Kithsiri, Apan, Armando and Hettiarachchi, Nandita K. |
Journal Title | Biodiversity and Conservation |
Journal Citation | 32 (10), pp. 3025-3052 |
Number of Pages | 28 |
Year | 2023 |
Publisher | Springer |
Place of Publication | Netherlands |
ISSN | 0960-3115 |
1572-9710 | |
Digital Object Identifier (DOI) | https://doi.org/10.1007/s10531-023-02650-7 |
Web Address (URL) | https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10531-023-02650-7 |
Abstract | Human-elephant conflict (HEC) is a severe conservation, socio-economic and environmental issue of forests and ecosystems in elephant inhabiting countries, including Sri Lanka. Due to the rapid growth of human and elephant populations, both struggles to share limited land resources. The major causes and contexts of HEC in Sri Lanka include land use change, habitat loss due to human population growth, crop raiding behavior, problem elephants, and changes in agriculture practices. Since 2019, 125 people and 370 elephants have killed annually on average due to the conflict. Also, Sri Lanka has recorded the highest annual elephant deaths and second-highest human deaths due to HEC. The human death rate has increased by approximately 42% over previous three decades. The Sri Lankan government provides compensation for death and disability of the human caused by elephants and for elephant-damaged houses or properties. The Sri Lankan elephant (Elephas maximus maximus) is an endangered subspecies. It’s home range is restricted to 50–150 km2 and depends on the availability of food, water, and shelter of the habitat in which they live. Various management strategies have been developed by the government and villagers to prevent and mitigate HEC. Today, Sri Lankan elephants are protected under Sri Lankan law, with punishment by fines and jail terms. This article reviews the history, present status, and traditional conflict management of HEC in Sri Lanka. We suggest a satellite data fusion approach with GIS modeling to identify risk zones of HEC to develop further protective measures for humans and elephants. |
Keywords | Asian elephant · Human-elephant conflict · Crop and property damages · Traditional mitigation methods · Sri Lanka |
Related Output | |
Is part of | Demarcating High-Risk Zones of Human-Elephant Conflict in Sri Lanka Utilizing GIS and a Satellite Data Fusion Approach |
Contains Sensitive Content | Does not contain sensitive content |
ANZSRC Field of Research 2020 | 401304. Photogrammetry and remote sensing |
Public Notes | This article is part of a UniSQ Thesis by publication. See Related Output. |
Byline Affiliations | School of Surveying and Built Environment |
Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka | |
University of Ruhuna, Sri Lanka |
https://research.usq.edu.au/item/yzx52/the-human-elephant-conflict-in-sri-lanka-history-and-present-status
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