| Principal Investigator: | Dr Matthew Struebig |
|---|---|
| Co-Investigator: | Dr Freya St. John, Dr Matthew Linkie |
| In-country Coordinator: | Jeanne McKay |
| Project dates: | 2014 – 2017 |
| Funding: | Leverhulme Trust |
| Collaborators: | Fauna and Flora International Indonesia Programme; University of Cambridge; Universitas Nasional (UNAS) Jakarta |
Large carnivores that cause loss of human life or livelihoods are frequently killed in retribution. However, religious or spiritual beliefs may encourage local tolerance of such conflicts. To date, conservation biologists and social scientists have not tested this aspect of human-wildlife conflict within a quantitative and interdisciplinary framework. This interdisciplinary research project explored both ecological and social determinants of such conflicts using a long-term case study of Sumatran tigers living close to Islamic farming communities.
Over 18 months our intrepid research team travelled around Kerinci-Seblat to speak with Sumatran people about their experiences with tigers and other wildlife. The survey of 2,386 people showed that many were supportive of tiger conservation, despite a backdrop of ongoing attacks from tigers. Different ethnic groups reported customary laws regarding tigers and distinguished zoological from several forms of spirit tiger. Rarely was the tiger in any of its manifestations perceived completely negatively.
Finally, we used geographic profiling – a spatial method typically used to find serial criminals – to predict the risk of encountering tigers. We showed that combining risk measures with social data on tolerance could help prioritise regions for future conflict mitigation. Further information can be found on the Nature Ecology & Evolution blog post here.
Outputs:
- McKay, J., St John, F.A.V., Harihar, A., Martyr, D.J., Leader-Williams, N., Milliyanawati, B., Agustin, I., Anggriawan, Y., Karlina, K., Kartika, E., Mangunjaya, F., Struebig, M. & Linkie, M. (2018) Tolerating tigers: Gaining local and spiritual perspectives on human-tiger interactions in Sumatra. PLoS ONE, 13, e0201447
- John, F.A.V., Linkie, M., Martyr, D.J., Milliyanawati, B., McKay, J., Mangunjaya, F., Leader-Williams, N. & Struebig, M. (2018) Intention to kill: Tolerance and illegal persecution of Sumatran tigers and sympatric taxa. Conservation Letters, 11, e12451
- Struebig, M., Linkie, M., Deere, N., Martyr, D.J., Milliyanawati, B., Faulkner, S.C., Le Comber, S.C., Mangunjaya, F., Leader-Williams, N., McKay, J. & St John, F.A.V. (2018) Addressing human-tiger conflict using socio-ecological information on tolerance and risk. Nature Communications, 9, 3455.