Livestock farmers' attitudes and perceptions towards predator populations

AbstractMan has always played a part in the ruthless killing of wildlife, dating back to as early as 186 BC when Romans’ encouraged beast-against-beast games. Today, man still contributes to the loss and death of numerous... [ view full abstract ]

Abstract

Man has always played a part in the ruthless killing of wildlife, dating back to as early as 186 BC when Romans’ encouraged beast-against-beast games. Today, man still contributes to the loss and death of numerous animals but in a less savage fashion than before.  Overtime the peace and harmony between human-animal coexistence has been lost, with some animals being labeled as ‘problem animals’ and falling victim to a number of land owners and livestock farmers.  These actions and attitudes of man against foe has been passed on from one generation to the next, giving rise to the term ‘human-wildlife conflict’, with ’human-wildlife conflict mitigation’ having become a distinguished term and tool amongst conservationists worldwide.  Thus there is a need to examine and monitor various conflict situations, not just globally, but on home grounds too.

The objectives of this paper is to examine the current human-wildlife conflict situation on farmlands in the Tsauchab-river valley, located between the Naukluft Mountains in the north and north-west, and the Tsaris Mountains in the south, in order to determine the attitudes and tolerance levels of livestock farmers towards local predator populations and to establish how a healthier level of co-existence could be achieved.  Qualitative data, collected via semi-structured personal interviews, conducted with various landowners and livestock farmers, were collected.  Substantive results indicated that landowners and farmers in the area have experienced livestock losses, ranging from small livestock such as goats and sheep to larger animals such as sub-adult cattle, due to predation by leopard, spotted hyaenas and cheetahs.  Results also indicated that various land owners have got a low tolerance level towards predators and that livestock owners appear to be willing to improve their tolerance towards predators provided that certain protocols were available to deal with a potential ‘problem animal’.  Possible protocols suggested that livestock owners would prefer to contact a designated person in a particular area to report any livestock losses to, after which possible solutions, ranging from camera trap placements, collaring or relocation of the potential problem animal, can be discussed with the applicable persons.