Understanding the Dynamics of Human-Tiger Conflict in Chitwan National Park, Nepal

Abstract

The forests of Chitwan National Park in the southern lowlands of Nepal provide habitat for more than 100 Bengal tigers. Recently, the tiger populations have increased in the region, which has increased the chances of conflict between tigers and people living in the vicinity of the park. In this study, the aim was to determine the dynamics of human-tiger conflicts and assess the perspectives of the local community towards tigers. Firstly, through desk research on human-tiger conflicts, the spatial and temporal variations of tiger attacks were assessed. Furthermore, clustering analysis was done to determine if the conflicts were uniformly distributed or not. Secondly, semi-structured interviews (n=54) were conducted with key informants and affected households across four municipalities of Chitwan district using targeted sampling. The results clearly revealed that there were hot spots of human-tiger conflicts, particularly concentrated in Bagai and Amaltari sectors. However, the presence of tigers was concentrated in the central core zone of the park. The findings from the interviews suggested that most of the tiger attacks are happening in the morning during collection of fodder in community forests, especially in a period between autumn and spring. The key informants (n=29) suggested that Madi, Meghauli and Kumroj are the areas more prone to attacks from ill and old tigers. The affected households (n=25) experienced tiger attacks within a kilometer from the core park boundaries. In general, people had a positive response towards tiger conservation, which could be attributed to the effective relief distribution scheme and public awareness. However, these affected households suggested that heavy dependency on forest resources compels them to visit community forests frequently despite the danger of the attacks. The coexistence between humans and tigers can be promoted by adopting conservation strategies such as ecotourism, which will uplift the livelihoods of the forest-dependent populations living along the boundaries of the park. Besides, timely identification and management of problem tigers is recommended, which may minimize the human-tiger conflicts.