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Park-People Relationships: The Case of Damage Caused by Park Animals Around the Royal Bardia National Park, Nepal

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 August 2009

Jan Erik Studsrød  and
Per Wegge
Jan Erik Studsrød
Affiliation:
Centre for International Environment & Development Studies (NORAGRIC), Agricultural University of Norway, 1432 Ås-NLH, Norway
Per Wegge
Affiliation:
Department of Biology & Nature Conservation, Agricultural University of Norway, 1432 Ås - NLH, Norway.
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Extract

Crop damage and livestock predation were a serious problem in three Village Development Committees (VDCs) situated adjacent to the Southwestern Part of the Royal Bardia National Park. The seriousness of crop and livestock losses varied considerably with the distance from the Park's border and the specific location of farms. This was explained by the variations in the distribution of animal wildlife inside the Park, the presence of natural and Man-made barriers, the availability of forested areas outside the Park, and the agricultural cropping pattern. Adjacent to the section of the Park with the highest animal densities, crop losses varied from 47% for Lentil to 24% for Wheat. Farther away, the extent of crop losses was reduced. In the ‘Far’ zone situated 2–8 km from the Park, only 3% of the Paddy was reported lost.

Two wildlife species, Chital and Wild Boar, were responsible for roughly half of the total damage to crops by animals. Damage from a newly-introduced population of Rhinoceros unicornis was increasing, with Paddy (Rice) and Lentil the crops most affected by that species. The economic value of livestock loss to wild predators was estimated to be two percent of the value of total crop losses. The estimated value of grasses harvested by local villagers inside the Park, seen as ‘compensation’ for crop losses and denial of access to traditional resources, constituted only 10% of the total economic loss from crop losses and livestock predation.

Type
Main Papers
Information
Environmental Conservation , Volume 22 , Issue 2 , Summer 1995 , pp. 133 - 142
Copyright
Copyright © Foundation for Environmental Conservation 1995

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