Livestock depredation by large cats in Bardia National Park, Nepal: Implications for improving park–people relations

Park–people conflict is a serious challenge undermining the integrity of protected areas in developing countries. Developing effective human–carnivore conflict mitigation strategies requires an understanding of the spatio-temporal conflict patterns and the species involved. This study therefore aims to examine spatio-temporal variations in livestock loss, severity and magnitude of the problem, and the predators involved in the southwestern section of the Bardia National Park, Nepal. Of 484 households surveyed, 66.5% reported 442 livestock loss over a 6 year period. About 45% of the total livestock loss occurred during the hot dry season. Tigers (Panthera tigris) and leopards (Panthera pardus) were the two major predators in the area: tigers killed larger livestock while leopards killed smaller livestock. Although the western villages lost livestock grazing inside the park, the eastern villages lost livestock either from corrals or from buffer zone forests. The estimated total economic loss was US$11,709.53 in 6 years. Rather than enforcing stringent rules, alternative approaches to the problem should be explored. Involving local residents in conflict management, providing incentives to maintain and relocate corrals, and introducing grass and fodder species can be helpful in mitigating the problem.