Human-Elephant Relations Becoming Crisis in Xishuangbanna, Southwest China

Abstract

Wild Asian elephants surviving in nature reserves in Southwest China became aggressive. They sometimes encroach on human residential areas and cultivated fields, foraging agricultural crops, destroying property and injuring or killing people. Participatory rural appraisal method, field data, 3S and literature research were used to study changes of human-elephant relations (HER). The results indicated that HER became crisis and elephant survival degenerated in the past 50 years. Five stages of HER were identified. (1) Little interference (1959–1971): except for dung and footprints, there were few signs of wild elephants in the wild. (2) Frequent encounters (1972–1990): wild elephants moved close to human residential areas and cultivated fields due to the rapid agricultural growth and natural habitat fragmentation. (3) Conflicts becoming serious (1991–1995): wild elephants began to forage agricultural crops, destroy property and injure people and they were also killed illegally by poachers for ivory or by angry farmers. (4) Protection and antagonism (1996–2005): illegal poaching and other damages to elephants were put down by the strengthened policies but wild elephants moved in the fragmented landscapes, causing serious damages to local people. (5) Sawing confrontation (2006–2010): wild elephants moved between the reserves and human residential areas and cultivated fields, creating elephant-problems. It was discussed that the replace of traditional embedding spatial pattern of human residential areas and wild elephant habitats by the present crisscrossing one was the main reasons for the changes of HER from harmony to conflict.