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Published on: August 8, 2017
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Multiscale factors affecting human attitudes toward snow leopards and wolves
Kulbhushansingh R Suryawanshi1, Saloni Bhatia, Yash Veer Bhatnagar
1Nature Conservation Foundation, 3076/5, IV Cross Gokulam Park, Mysore, 570002, India; Snow Leopard Trust, 4649 Sunnyside Avenue North, Suite 325, Seattle, WA, 98103, U.S.A.; Manipal University, Manipal, Karnataka, India. kulbhushan@ncf-india.org.
Summary
Human attitudes toward wildlife, like snow leopards and wolves, are influenced by factors at both individual and community levels. Understanding these scale-dependent factors is crucial for effective conservation and conflict management strategies.
Area of Science:
- Conservation Biology
- Human-Wildlife Interactions
- Social Science Research
Background:
- Human-carnivore conflict threatens coexistence, making local attitudes towards species critical for conservation policy success.
- Previous studies on human attitudes toward carnivores focused solely on individual-level factors, neglecting the hierarchical nature of social organization.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantitatively assess attitudes of a Buddhist pastoral community towards snow leopards (Panthera uncia) and wolves (Canis lupus).
- To examine how socioeconomic factors influence these attitudes at both individual and community scales using hierarchical linear models.
Main Methods:
- Conducted structured interview surveys with 381 individuals across 24 villages in the Spiti Valley, Indian Trans-Himalaya.
- Collected data on individual and village-level socioeconomic variables.
- Employed hierarchical linear models to analyze scale-dependent effects on human attitudes.
Main Results:
- Individual-level factors (gender, education, age, income sources, agricultural production, livestock holdings) significantly influenced attitudes.
- Community-level factors (livestock predation, mean agricultural production, village size, livestock holdings) also showed significant effects.
- Identified distinct factors influencing attitudes towards snow leopards versus wolves.
Conclusions:
- Scaling analysis from individual to community levels reveals crucial, often overlooked, factors influencing human-wildlife attitudes and conservation engagement.
- Scale-specific information is vital for designing and implementing targeted conservation measures and multipronged conflict management programs.
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