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Elephant deaths due to human elephant conflict in and around Bandipur Natioanl Park, Karnataka, India

Author Affiliations

  • 1DOS in Environmental science, University of Mysore, Mysore-570006, Karnataka, INDIA
  • 2Department of Studies in Environmaental Science, University of Mysore, Mysore-570006, Karnataka, INDIA

Res. J. Animal, Veterinary and Fishery Sci., Volume 2, Issue (11), Pages 7-12, November,24 (2014)

Abstract

Survey has been conducted in the fringe villages near Bandipur National Park, Karnataka in the year 2012 to study elephant mortality. Available forest department records on elephant death from 2007-2012 were also incorporated during analysis. The present investigation revealed that 33 elephants were electrocuted; 5were shot dead by gun and 1 killed by road accident. Elephants were killed near farmlands by farmers in defense of their crops. Among dead elephants males were 35.89 % and females were 64.09 %, their age class ranges from 1 to 38 years. Adults (16-65 years) and sub adults (6-15 years) of males and females were killed very frequently. Incidents took place normally in rainy (50 %) and winter (42 %) seasons as crop maturity correlates those seasons. Crop maturity and elephant kill found to be positively correlated in the park. Incidents were not uniformly distributed in all wildlife divisions within the park, ten incidents were reported from Omkar range, which is followed by Gundre region with eight elephant deaths, due to loss of home ranges in the past for agricultural activities. Forest department has to initiate steps to avoid reoccurrence of such incidents in the future.

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