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Mapping & GIS

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This section examines the use of spatial and GIS tools to identify human-wildlife conflict hotspots. By integrating ecological, social, spatial and temporal data, these approaches help predict conflicts, guide targeted interventions, and prioritise areas for prevention and management.

Key Papers

Acharya, K. P., Paudel, P. K., Neupane, P. R., & Köhl, M. 2016. Human-wildlife conflicts in Nepal: Patterns of human fatalities and injuries caused by large mammals. PLoS One, 11(9), e0161717. External resource

Ahearn, S. C., Smith, J. L. D., Joshi, A. R., & Ding, J. 2001. TIGMOD: An individual-based spatially explicit model for simulating tiger/human interaction in multiple use forests. Ecological Modelling, 140:81–97. External resource

Anand, S., S. Vaidyanathan, and S. Radhakrishna. 2021. The role of landscape structure in primate crop feeding: insights from rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) in northern India. International Journal of Primatology.  External resource 

Ardiantiono, S. M. Henkanaththegedara, B. Sideleau, Sheherazade, Y. Anwar, I. A. Haidir, and A. A. T. Amarasinghe. 2023. Integrating social and ecological information to identify high-risk areas of human-crocodile conflict in the Indonesian Archipelago. Biological Conservation 280:109965.   External resource 

Balbuena-Serrano, Á., M. M. Zarco-González, O. Monroy-Vilchis, R. G. Morato, and R. C. De Paula. 2021. Hotspots of livestock depredation by pumas and jaguars in Brazil: a biome-scale analysis. Animal Conservation 24:181-193.  External resource 

Bautista, C., J. Oeser, T. Kuemmerle, and N. Selva. 2022. Resource pulses and human–wildlife conflicts: linking satellite indicators and ground data on forest productivity to predict brown bear damages. Remote Sensing in Ecology and Conservation.  Download 

Bautista, C., E. Revilla, T. Berezowska-Cnota, N. Fernández, J. Naves, and N. Selva. 2021. Spatial ecology of conflicts: unravelling patterns of wildlife damage at multiple scales. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 288:20211394.  External resource 

Boudreau, M. R., M. G. Gantchoff, C. Ramirez-Reyes, L. Conlee, J. L. Belant, and R. B. Iglay. 2021. Using habitat suitability and landscape connectivity in the spatial prioritization of public outreach and management during carnivore recolonization. Journal of Applied Ecology.  External resource 

Campbell, H. A., R. G. Dwyer, H. Wilson, T. R. Irwin, and C. E. Franklin. 2015. Predicting the probability of large carnivore occurrence: a strategy to promote crocodile and human coexistence. Animal Conservation 18:387-395.  External resource 

Chatterjee, M., N. Chatterjee, P. Chandel, T. Bhattacharya, and R. Kaul. 2022. Predicting negative human-tiger (Panthera tigris) interactions in mosaic landscapes around Dudhwa and Pilibhit tiger reserves in India. Frontiers in Conservation Science 3.  Download 

Chaudhuri, S., M. Bandyopadhyay, R. Rajaraman, S. Kalyanasundaram, S. Sambandam, and R. Krishnamurthy. 2022. Spatio-temporal patterns and source-dispersion modeling towards sloth bear–human conflict management in central India. Frontiers in Conservation Science 3.  Download 

Corriveau, A., M. Klaassen, S. T. Garnett, M. Kaestli, K. Christian, T. L. Crewe, D. A. Loewensteiner, and H. A. Campbell. 2022. Seasonal space use and habitat selection in magpie geese: implications for reducing human-wildlife conflicts. The Journal of Wildlife Management n/a:e22289.  Download 

Das, C. S., and R. Jana. 2018. Human–crocodile conflict in the Indian Sundarban: an analysis of spatio-temporal incidences in relation to people's livelihood. Oryx 52:661-668.  External resource 

Davoli, M., A. Ghoddousi, F. M. Sabatini, E. Fabbri, R. Caniglia, and T. Kuemmerle. 2022. Changing patterns of conflict between humans, carnivores and crop-raiding prey as large carnivores recolonize human-dominated landscapes. Biological Conservation 269:109553.   Download 

de Souza, J.C., da Cunha, V.P. & Markwith, S.H. 2015. Spatiotemporal variation in human-wildlife conflicts along highway BR-262 in the Brazilian Pantanal. Wetlands Ecol Manage 23:227–239. External resources

Dellinger, J. A., D. K. Macon, J. L. Rudd, D. L. Clifford, and S. G. Torres. 2021. Temporal trends and drivers of mountain lion depredation in California, USA. Human–Wildlife Interactions 15:21.  Download 

Di Minin, E., R. Slotow, C. Fink, H. Bauer, and C. Packer. 2021. A pan-African spatial assessment of human conflicts with lions and elephants. Nature Communications 12:2978.  Download 

Drouilly, M., Tafani, M., Nattrass, N., & O'Riain, M. J. 2018. Spatial, temporal and attitudinal dimensions of conflict between predators and small-livestock farmers in the Central Karoo. African Journal of Range & Forage Science, 35(3–4), 245–255. External resource

Dunham, K. M., A. Ghiurghi, R. Cumbi, and F. Urbano. 2010. Human-wildlife conflict in Mozambique: a national perspective, with emphasis on wildlife attacks on humans. Oryx 44:185-193.  External resource 

Eva, A. N., A. Suzuki, and S. Numata. 2022. Spatiotemporal patterns of human–carnivore encounters in a seasonally changing landscape a case study of the fishing cat in Hakaluki Haor, Bangladesh. Conservation 2:402-413.  Download 

Fedyń, I., K. Bojarska, N. Gerber, and H. Okarma. 2022. Blood trail of expansion? Long-term patterns of livestock depredation by wolves in Poland. Ecological Research.  External resource 

Fernando, C., M. A. Weston, R. Corea, K. Pahirana, and A. R. Rendall. 2022. Asian elephant movements between natural and human-dominated landscapes mirror patterns of crop damage in Sri Lanka. Oryx:1-8.   Download 

Fidino, M., E. W. Lehrer, C. A. M. Kay, N. T. Yarmey, M. H. Murray, K. Fake, H. C. Adams, and S. B. Magle. 2022. Integrated species distribution models reveal spatiotemporal patterns of human–wildlife conflict. Ecological Applications n/a:e2647.   External resource 

Gehrt, S. D., E. M. Muntz, E. C. Wilson, J. W. B. Power, and S. D. Newsome. Severe environmental conditions create severe conflicts: a novel ecological pathway to extreme coyote attacks on humans. Journal of Applied Ecology.   Download 

 

Gubbi, S. 2012. Patterns and correlates of human–elephant conflict around a south Indian reserve. Biological Conservation, 148(1):88–95. External resource 

González-Desales, G. A., L. Sigler, J. García-Grajales, P. Charruau, M. M. Zarco-González, Á. Balbuena-Serrano, and O. Monroy-Vilchis. 2021. Factors influencing the occurrence of negative interactions between people and crocodilians in Mexico. Oryx:1-9.  Download 

García-Grajales, J., and A. Buenrostro-Silva. 2019. Assessment of human–crocodile conflict in Mexico: patterns, trends and hotspots areas. Marine and Freshwater Research 70:708-720.  External resource 

Hagani, J. S., S. M. Kross, M. Clark, R. Wynn-Grant, and M. Blair. 2021. Mapping and modeling human-black bear interactions in the Catskills region of New York using resource selection probability functions. Plos One 16:e0257716.  Download 

Hahn, N. R., J. Wall, K. Denninger-Snyder, W. Sairowua, M. Goss, S. Ndambuki, E. Eblate, N. Mbise, S. Kiambi, and G. Wittemyer. 2023. Staging behaviours identify spatial and temporal risk of human-wildlife conflict. Journal of Applied Ecology.   Download 

Ji, Y., Wei, X.,  Liu, F.,  Li, J., Li, D., Huang, X., Jiang, J. and Tang, J. 2022. Assessing the spatial-temporal patterns of conflicts between humans and Asiatic black bears (Ursus thibetanus) around the Gaoligongshan Nature Reserve, China. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution 10.   Download 

Kachel, S., K. Anderson, and Q. Shokirov. 2022. Predicting carnivore habitat use and livestock depredation risk with false-positive multi-state occupancy models. Biological Conservation 271:109588.   External resource 

Karanth, K.K., Gopalaswamy, A.M., DeFries, R., & Ballal, N. 2012. Assessing patterns of human-wildlife conflicts and compensation around a central Indian protected area. PLoS One, 7(12):e50433. Extrnal resource

Khosravi, R., H. Y. Wan, M.-R. Sadeghi, and S. A. Cushman. 2022. Identifying human–brown bear conflict hotspots for prioritizing critical habitat and corridor conservation in southwestern Iran. Animal Conservation.  External resource 

Kiffner, C., S. Uthes, E.-F. Ostermann-Miyashita, V. Harms, and H. J. König. 2022. Patterns of livestock loss associated with a recolonizing wolf population in Germany. Frontiers in Conservation Science 3.   Download 

Klees van Bommel, J., C. Sun, A. T. Ford, M. Todd, and A. C. Burton. 2022. Coexistence or conflict: black bear habitat use along an urban-wildland gradient. Plos One 17:e0276448.   Download 

Kolowski, J.M., & Holekamp, K.E. 2006. Spatial, temporal, and physical characteristics of livestock depredations by large carnivores along a Kenyan reserve border. Biological Conservation, 128(4):529–541. External resource

Koziarski, A., Kissui, B., & Kiffner, C. 2016. Patterns and correlates of perceived conflict between humans and large carnivores in northern Tanzania. Biological Conservation, 199:41–50. External resource

Kuiper, T., A. J. Loveridge, and D. W. Macdonald. 2021. Robust mapping of human–wildlife conflict: controlling for livestock distribution in carnivore depredation models. Animal Conservation.  External resource 

Lecuyer, L., S. Calmé, B. Schmook, and R. M. White. 2022. Conservation conflict hotspots: mapping impacts, risk perception and tolerance for sustainable conservation management. Frontiers in Conservation Science 3.  Download 

Linkie, M., Dinata, Y., Nofrianto, A., & Leader-Williams, N. 2007. Patterns and perceptions of wildlife crop raiding in and around Kerinci Seblat National Park Sumatra. Animal Conservation, 10(1), 127–135. External resource

Liu, M., Y. Wang, F. Xia, H. Bu, Y. Liu, X. Shen, and S. Li. 2022. Free-ranging livestock altered the spatiotemporal behavior of the endangered North Chinese leopard (Panthera pardus japonensis) and its prey and intensified human–leopard conflicts. Integrative Zoology.  External resource 

Long, H., Mojo, D., Fu, C., Wang, G., Kanga, E., Oduor, A. M. O., & Zhang, L. 2020. Patterns of human-wildlife conflict and management implications in Kenya: A national perspective. Human Dimensions of Wildlife, 25(2), 121–135. External resource

Mahajan, P., R. Chaudhary, A. Kazi, and D. Khandal. 2022. Spatial determinants of livestock depredation and human attitude toward wolves in Kailadevi Wildlife Sanctuary, Rajasthan, India. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution 10.   Download 

Malviya, M., and R. Krishnamurthy. 2022. Multiscale spatially explicit modelling of livestock depredation by reintroduced tiger (Panthera tigris) to predict conflict risk probability. Global Ecology and Conservation:e02313.  Download 

Manfredo, M. J., R. E. Berl, T. L. Teel, and J. T. Bruskotter. 2021. Bringing social values to wildlife conservation decisions. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment.  Download 

Mayer, M., K. Olsen, B. Schulz, J. Matzen, C. Nowak, P. F. Thomsen, M. M. Hansen, C. Vedel-Smith, and P. Sunde. 2022. Occurrence and livestock depredation patterns by wolves in highly cultivated landscapes. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution 10.  Download 

Michalski, F., Boulhosa, R.L.P., Faria, A. & Peres, C.A. 2006. Human–wildlife conflicts in a fragmented Amazonian forest landscape: Determinants of large felid depredation on livestock. Animal Conservation, 9(2), 179–188. External resource

Mohammadi, A., K. Almasieh, H. Y. Wan, D. Nayeri, A. Alambeigi, J. I. Ransom, and S. A. Cushman. 2021. Integrating spatial analysis and questionnaire survey to better understand human-onager conflict in Southern Iran. Scientific Reports 11:12423.  Download 

Mukeka, J. M., Ogutu, J. O., Kanga, E., & Roskaft, E. 2018. Characteristics of human-wildlife conflicts in Kenya: Examples of Tsavo and Maasai Mara regions. Environment and Natural Resources Research, 8(3), p148. External resource

Mukeka, J. M., Ogutu, J. O., Kanga, E., & Røskaft, E. 2019. Human-wildlife conflicts and their correlates in Narok County, Kenya. Global Ecology and Conservation, 18, e00620. External resource

Osborn, F. V. 2004. Seasonal variation of feeding patterns and food selection by crop-raiding elephants in Zimbabwe. African Journal of Ecology, 42(4), 322–327. External resource 

Pagoda, L. R. 2017. Crocodile human encounter patterns in Sri Lanka. Prehospital and Disaster Medicine 32:S117-S117.  External resource  

Pintor, A. F. V., N. Ray, J. Longbottom, C. A. Bravo-Vega, M. Yousefi, K. A. Murray, D. S. Ediriweera, and P. J. Diggle. 2021. Addressing the global snakebite crisis with geo-spatial analyses – recent advances and future direction. Toxicon: X 11:100076.  Download 

 

Pizzigalli, C., Regalla, A., Palmeirim, A.F., Palma, L., Lopes-Lima, M., Razgour, O., Godinho, R., Intipe, W.A. and Brito, J.C. 2025. Diversity, distribution and conservation of crocodiles (Order: Crocodylia) in Guinea-Bissau, West Africa. Scientific Reports 15:24703. External resources

Pooley, S., H. Botha, X. Combrink, and G. Powell. 2019. Synthesizing Nile crocodile Crocodylus niloticus attack data and historical context to inform mitigation efforts in South Africa and eSwatini (Swaziland). Oryx (early view).  External resource 

Poudel, S., J. P. Twining, R. C. Stedman, S. K. Ghimire, and A. K. Fuller. 2023. Ecological and anthropogenic drivers of leopard (Panthera pardus fusca) attack occurrence on humans in Nepal. People and Nature.   Download 

Powell, G., T. M. M. Versluys, J. J. Williams, S. Tiedt, and S. Pooley. 2020. Using environmental niche modelling to investigate abiotic predictors of crocodilian attacks on people. Oryx:1-9.  External resource 

Pozo, R. A., LeFlore, E. G., Duthie, A. B., Bunnefeld, N., Jones, I. L., Minderman, J., Rakotonarivo, O. S., & Cusack, J. J. 2021. A multispecies assessment of wildlife impacts on local community livelihoods. Conservation Biology, 35(1), 297–306. External resource

Raymond, S., and C. C. St. Clair. 2022. Urban coyotes select cryptic den sites near human development where conflict rates increase. The Journal of Wildlife Management n/a:e22323.  External resource 

Rojas-VeraPinto, R., C. Bautista, and N. Selva. 2022. Living high and at risk: predicting Andean bear occurrence and conflicts with humans in southeastern Peru. Global Ecology and Conservation:e02112.   Download 

Sage, A. H., V. Hillis, R. A. Graves, M. Burnham, and N. H. Carter. 2022. Paths of coexistence: spatially predicting acceptance of grizzly bears along key movement corridors. Biological Conservation 266:109468.  Download 

Sharma, P., Chettri, N., Uddin, K., Wangchuk, K., Joshi, R., Tandin, T., Pandey, A., Gaira, K.S., Basnet, K., Wangdi, S.,  Dorji, T., Wangchuk, N., Chitale, V.S., Uprety, Y. and Sharma, E. 2020. Mapping human‒wildlife conflict hotspots in a transboundary landscape, Eastern Himalaya. Global Ecology and Conservation, 24:e01284. External resource

Shivakumar, S., D. Carricondo-Sánchez, V. Athreya, M. Odden, S. P. Dhiman, S. Vaidyanathan, and K. K. Karanth. 2023. Examining leopard attacks: spatio-temporal clustering of human injuries and deaths in Western Himalayas, India. Frontiers in Conservation Science 4.   Download 

Singer, L., X. Wietlisbach, R. Hickisch, E. M. Schoell, C. Leuenberger, A. Van den Broek, M. Désalme, K. Driesen, M. Lyly, F. Marucco, M. Kutal, N. Pagon, C. R. Papp, P. Milioni, R. Uzdras, I. Zihmanis, F. Zimmermann, K. Marsden, K. Hackländer, J. V. López-Bao, S. Klenzendorf, and D. Wegmann. 2023. The spatial distribution and temporal trends of livestock damages caused by wolves in Europe. Biological Conservation 282:110039.   Download 

Sitati, N.W., Walpole, M.J., Smith, R.J., & Leader-Williams, N. 2003. Predicting spatial aspects of human-elephant conflict. Journal of Applied Ecology, 40(4), 667–677. External resource

Stanger, M. E., K. M. Slagle, and J. T. Bruskotter. 2022. Impact of location on predator control preference patterns. Frontiers in Conservation Science 3.   Download 

Tallian, A., J. Mattisson, G. Samelius, J. Odden, C. Mishra, J. D. C. Linnell, P. Lkhagvajav, and Ö. Johansson. 2023. Wild versus domestic prey: variation in the kill-site behavior of two large felids. Global Ecology and Conservation 47:e02650.  Download 

Tavolaro, F. M., Z. Woodgate, C. Brown, S. M. Redpath, and M. J. O'Riain. 2022. Multispecies study of patterns and drivers of wildlife impacts on human livelihoods in communal conservancies. Conservation Science and Practice n/a:e12773.  Download 

Treves, A., Martin, K.A., Wydeven, A.P. & Wiedenhoeft, J.E. 2011. Forecasting environmental hazards and the application of risk maps to predator attacks on livestock. Bioscience, 61(6), 451–458. External resource 


Treves, A., Naughton-Treves, L., Harper, E.K., Mladenoff, D.J., Rose, R. A., Sickley, T.A. & Wydeven, A.P. 2004. Predicting human-carnivore conflict: A spatial model derived from 25 years of data on wolf predation on livestock. Conservation Biology, 18(1), 114–125. External resource 

Tripathy, B. R., X. Liu, M. Songer, L. Kumar, S. Kaliraj, N. D. Chatterjee, W. M. S. Wickramasinghe, and K. K. Mahanta. 2021. Descriptive spatial analysis of human-elephant conflict (HEC) distribution and mapping HEC hotspots in Keonjhar Forest Division, India. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution 9.  External resource 

van Eeden, L. M., C. Bogezi, D. Leng, J. M. Marzluff, A. J. Wirsing, and S. Rabotyagov. 2021. Public willingness to pay for gray wolf conservation that could support a rancher-led wolf-livestock coexistence program. Biological Conservation 260:109226.  External resource 

Vargas, S. P., M. Hargreaves, J. P. Del Valle, A. Hodges, E. Beltrami, M. F. Toledo, and G. Sapaj-Aguilera. 2022. Coexistence in times of climate crisis: a participatory mapping to understanding conservation conflicts in the Central Andes of Chile. Frontiers in Conservation Science 3.   Download 

Vasudev, D., R. J. Fletcher, N. Srinivas, A. J. Marx, and V. R. Goswami. 2023. Mapping the connectivity–conflict interface to inform conservation. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 120:e2211482119.   Download 

Vélez, J., McShea, W., Budhan Pukazhenthi, B., Stevenson, P. & Fieberg, J. 2023. Implications of the scale of detection for inferring co-occurrence patterns from paired camera traps and acoustic recorders. Conservation Biology 38:e14218. External resources

Warrier, R., B. R. Noon, and L. L. Bailey. 2021. A framework for estimating human-wildlife conflict probabilities conditional on species occupancy. Frontiers in Conservation Science 2.  Download 

Wilkinson, C. E., T. Caspi, L. A. Stanton, D. Campbell, and C. J. Schell. 2023. Coexistence across space and time: social-ecological patterns within a decade of human-coyote interactions in San Francisco. People and Nature.   Download 

Wilkinson, C. E., J. S. Brashares, A. C. Bett, and M. Kelly. 2021. Examining drivers of divergence in recorded and perceived human-carnivore conflict hotspots by integrating participatory and ecological data. Frontiers in Conservation Science 2.  Download 

Wilson, S., Davies, T., Hazarika, N., & Zimmermann, A. 2013. Understanding spatial and temporal patterns of human–elephant conflict in Assam, India. Oryx, 49, 140–149. External resource 

​Xiao, L., F. Hua, J. M. H. Knops, X. Zhao, C. Mishra, S. Lovari, J. S. Alexander, B. Weckworth, and Z. Lu. 2022. Spatial separation of prey from livestock facilitates coexistence of a specialized large carnivore with human land use. Animal Conservation.   External resource 

Yurco, K., King, B., Young, K.R., & Crews, K.A. 2017. Human–wildlife interactions and environmental dynamics in the Okavango Delta, Botswana. Society & Natural Resources, 30(9), 1112–1126. External resource  

Zuber, S.N., Abidin, K.Z., Mohamed, M.S., Pikri, F.I. & Trans, D.M. 2024. Spatial and Temporal Assessment of Malayan-Tapir Conflict (Tapirus indicus) In Peninsular Malaysia from 2013 to 2019. Journal of Wildlife and Parks, 39:57-73. External resources

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