@article {126623, title = {Safe space in the woods: Mechanistic spatial models for predicting risks of human-bear conflicts in India}, journal = {BIOTROPICA }, volume = {55}, year = {2023}, month = {03/2023}, pages = {504-516}, abstract = {

Human-wildlife interactions can have negative consequences when they involve large carnivores. Spatial risk modelling could serve as a useful management approach for predicting and pre-emptively mitigating negative interactions. We present a mechanistic modelling framework and examine interactions between humans and sloth bears (Melursus ursinus) in a multi-use forest landscape of central India. We first assessed patterns and determinants of bear distribution across the landscape using indirect sign surveys. At the same spatial scale, we then estimated spatial probabilities of bear attacks on people using information from 675 interviews with local residents, incorporating estimates of distribution probabilities from the previous step. We found the average occupancy probability across 128 grid-cells to be 0.77 (SE = 0.03). Bear occupancy was influenced by terrain ruggedness, forest composition and configuration, vegetation productivity and size of human settlements. The average probability of a bear attack in any given grid-cell was 0.61 (SE = 0.03), mostly determined by bear occurrence patterns, forest cover, terrain ruggedness, and size of human settlements. Using spatial information on people{\textquoteright}s dependence on forest resources, we identified locations with the highest risk of bear attacks. Our study demonstrates that human attacks by bears-generally believed to be random or incidental-in fact showed deterministic patterns. Our framework can be applied to other scenarios involving human-wildlife conflicts. Based on our findings, we propose that a proactive co-management approach which involves collaboration between wildlife managers and local residents could help better manage human-bear conflicts in central India and elsewhere across the species{\textquoteright} range.

}, doi = {10.1111/btp.13204}, author = {Puri, Mahi and Srivathsa, Arjun and Karanth, Krithi K. and Patel, Imran and Kumar, N. Samba} } @article {118431, title = {Chasms in charismatic species research: Seventy years of carnivore science and its implications for conservation and policy in India}, journal = {BIOLOGICAL CONSERVATION }, volume = {273}, year = {2022}, month = {09/2022}, abstract = {

Substantial research and conservation resources are invested towards studying, protecting, and managing carnivore populations, globally. But scholarly investigations that link the outcomes of ecological research and their applications are not commonplace. Such syntheses can have implications for large predator management and human well-being. India holds strategic importance for carnivore conservation and management, supporting 60 species (including two sub-species), at relatively high densities. Reviewing all carnivore studies published in post-independence India (1947-2020), we investigate the academic impacts of published journal articles, and the role of institutions and collaborative research. We then present an analysis of the thematic patterns, trends, and biases in carnivore research. Using multiple case studies, we discuss the pertinence of ecological research in shaping litigation, policy, and conservation, while also deliberating on the facilitative role of funding and bureaucracy. Despite their purported charisma, not all carnivores benefited from extensive ecological studies, nor did conservation policy adequately draw from available scientific information; research studies were skewed towards large felids, and litigation/policies were overwhelmingly shaped by one species, the Bengal tiger Panthera tigris. We argue for reorienting current research efforts through increased focus on lesser-known species, adopting best practices in socio-ecological studies, widening the ambit of interdisciplinary work, democratizing carnivore science through partnerships, and enhancing synergy between carnivore researchers and research groups. Considered together, we believe this paper can serve as a guide for planning future research, for amplifying the overall profile of carnivore conservation science, and may be adapted across tropical countries of the Global South.

}, doi = {10.1016/j.biocon.2022.109694}, author = {Srivathsa, Arjun and Banerjee, Aditya and Banerjee, Soumya and Chawla, Malaika Mathew and Das, Anshita and Ganguly, Divyajyoti and Rodrigues, Ryan G. and Adhya, Tiasa and Bhatia, Saloni and Kshettry, Aritra and Majgaonkar, Iravatee and Punjabi, Girish A. and Puri, Mahi and Singh, Priya and Surve, Nikit} } @article {13269, title = {Spatio-temporal interactions facilitate large carnivore sympatry across a resource gradient.}, journal = {Proc Biol Sci}, volume = {284}, year = {2017}, month = {2017 Feb 08}, abstract = {

Species within a guild vary their use of time, space and resources, thereby enabling sympatry. As intra-guild competition intensifies, such behavioural adaptations may become prominent. We assessed mechanisms of facilitating sympatry among dhole (Cuon alpinus), leopard (Panthera pardus) and tiger (Panthera tigris) in tropical forests of India using camera-trap surveys. We examined population-level temporal, spatial and spatio-temporal segregation among them across four reserves representing a gradient of carnivore and prey densities. Temporal and spatial overlaps were higher at lower prey densities. Combined spatio-temporal overlap was minimal, possibly due to chance. We found fine-scale avoidance behaviours at one high-density reserve. Our results suggest that: (i) patterns of spatial, temporal and spatio-temporal segregation in sympatric carnivores do not necessarily mirror each other; (ii) carnivores are likely to adopt temporal, spatial, and spatio-temporal segregation as alternative mechanisms to facilitate sympatry; and (iii) carnivores show adaptability across a gradient of resource availability, a driver of inter-species competition. We discuss behavioural mechanisms that permit carnivores to co-occupy rather than dominate functional niches, and adaptations to varying intensities of competition that are likely to shape structure and dynamics of carnivore guilds.

}, issn = {1471-2954}, doi = {10.1098/rspb.2016.1860}, author = {Karanth, K Ullas and Srivathsa, Arjun and Vasudev, Divya and Puri, Mahi and Parameshwaran, Ravishankar and Kumar, N Samba} }