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Assessment of people's attitudes towards the Sri Lankan leopard Panthera pardus kotiya in Sri Lankan hill country

par Neupane, Kushal
Promoteur ROVERO, Francesco
Co-Promoteur Kudavidanage, Enoka;Huge, Jean ;Kral, Michelle
Publication Non publié, 2024-08-29

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Résumé :

Large carnivores, such as the Sri Lankan leopard (Panthera pardus kotiya), face significant challenges due to human-wildlife conflicts, which often arise from competing resource needs. These conflicts can lead to opportunistic predation on domestic animals and occasional attacks on humans, prompting retaliatory actions like poisoning and shooting that exacerbate the problem. As a result, this keystone species is prone to habitat loss and human-induced mortality in a shared landscape such as tea-estates. These human-induced ecological threats are usually driven by the attitude of local people who experience and respond to such conflict scenarios. To address these challenges effectively, it is crucial to understand the local attitudes, knowledge, and socioeconomic factors influencing human-leopard interactions. This study, thus aims to understand these factors by interviewing on-field workers and managers in Sri Lanka’s hill country tea estates. The data, thus, collected was analyzed using a Generalized Linear Model (GLM) with gamma distribution to investigate the determinants of attitudes towards leopards. The analysis reveals that male respondents generally hold more positive attitudes compared to females, while those concerned about the leopard’s presence and those frequently visiting forests for resource collection exhibit more negative attitudes. To improve community attitudes towards Sri Lankan leopards, we recommend establishing eco clubs in tea estates led by female workers and implementing targeted educational programs to address myths and provide accurate information. This study highlights key factors influencing attitudes towards leopards, essential for developing effective strategies for human-leopard coexistence in the region.