Decoding patterns of lion, tiger and leopard attacks on humans
Lion attacks led to more human fatalities than by other species, says study
A recent study published in the Journal of Applied Ecology reveals that lion attacks led to more human fatalities, persisted for a longer time and extended over larger areas than tiger or leopard attacks.
The study analysed 908 attacks on humans by these species in India, Nepal, and Tanzania. Researchers said very little is known about the pattern of such attacks and studies like these provide a range of perspectives.
Time and space
“We have attempted to understand the spread of these attacks in terms of time and space. Each spread was different. For example, leopard attacks in Maharashtra occurred in agricultural villages, while those in Himachal Pradesh were frequent in rain-fed croplands,” said Vidya Athreya, a research associate at the Wildlife Conservation Society and one of the authors of the study.
The study also revealed that lion and tiger attacks were disproportionately located in residential woodlands habitat with 10–100 people per sq km, and lions also attacked more people in areas with recent loss of tree cover.
Titled ‘Species-specific spatiotemporal patterns of leopard, lion and tiger attacks on humans’, the study was initiated by lion expert Craig Packer and ecologist Nicholas M. Fountain-Jones. It analysed 319 lion attacks in southern Tanzania between 1989 and 2008 that were spread over an area of 42,500 sq km; 67 leopard attacks between 1993 and 2003 in Maharashtra spread over an area of 4,100 sq km and 329 leopard attacks between 2004 and 2014 in Himachal Pradesh spread over an area of 19,100 sq km.
‘Warning people’
The tiger attacks were studied in India and Nepal — 94 attacks over an area of 2,400 sq km in Maharashtra between 2005 and 2010; and 88 in 2,300 sq km around the Chitwan National Park in Nepal between 1979 and 2006.
“Our analysis reveals the typical spatiotemporal patterns of past lion, leopard, and tiger attacks on humans. In future, this technique could be used by relevant agencies to warn local people of risks from further attacks within a certain time and distance following an initial incident by each species,” the study stated, adding that the approach can also help identify areas requiring management interventions to address such threats.
According to researcher Shweta Shivakumar, who covered the Himachal Pradesh aspect of the study, the data on the attacks were obtained from the forest department. “We further interviewed the people and also visited the spot of the attack,” said Ms. Shivakumar, adding that a space-time scan was carried out by feeding GPS location, date, time and other details of the attacks.
“The findings could provide valuable information to agencies for concentrated conservation efforts in future,” she said.
Source: The Hindu, 17/01/2019
