SpringerLink
Log in

A Review of Livestock Predation by Large Carnivores in the Himalayan Kingdom of Bhutan

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Problematic Wildlife

Abstract

With a rich biodiversity due to its location at the juncture of two biogeographical realms, the Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan is renowned for its unique concept of ‘Gross National Happiness’ (GNH) as an economic development policy and indicator of social well-being. Nature conservation is a key pillar of GNH, manifested through a comprehensive protected area system under natural forest cover connected by biological corridors. Bhutan’s forests harbour 39 carnivore species including IUCN red-listed species like the tiger Panthera tigris; snow leopard Panthera uncia; clouded leopard Neofelis nebulosa; common leopard Panthera pardus; and dhole Cuon alpinus. With rural people and their subsistence economy integrated into the conservation landscape, livestock predation is an inherent issue especially in northern regions where several predation hotspots are recognised. Tigers, snow leopards, leopards and dhole prey on livestock, largely due to untended free grazing in forests, inadequate penning at night, and lowered natural prey densities from competition with livestock. To offset rural economic loss in excess of USD100,000 per year due to livestock predation, a compensation scheme was trialled between 2003 and 2005. Initially successful, it lapsed due to unsustainable funding, delays between reporting and payment, excessive bureaucracy, and great distances travelled to report livestock attacks. Despite large predators like the tiger and leopard being culturally revered amidst a Buddhist population respecting the sanctity of life, there is growing resentment to livestock predators and a reported increase in retaliatory killing. Improved animal husbandry practices need to be encouraged to alleviate the socio-economic impact of livestock predation and ensure adequate protection for predators. These include greater vigilance during grazing, proper penning and tethering of livestock, switching to more secure and productive stall-fed cattle, and avoidance of grazing in predation hotspots. Authorities in turn must zone protected areas by imposing grazing restrictions on known predator hotspots. Future compensation schemes must impose stricter conditions on compensation, where claims must be supported by evidence of effective husbandry practices. Community-based insurance schemes being trialled across Bhutan may prove effective and sustainable in the long term. Unless the socio-economic impacts of livestock predation are addressed and alleviated, the cultural and religious fabric that binds people and nature conservation in Bhutan is in serious jeopardy.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
EUR 32.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or Ebook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 129.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 169.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free ship** worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 169.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free ship** worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Bagchi S, Mishra C (2006) Living with large carnivores: predation on livestock by the snow leopard (Uncia uncia). J Zool 268:217–224

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baker PJ, Boitani L, Harris S et al (2008) Terrestrial carnivores and human food production: impact and management. Mammal Rev 38:123–166

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Balme GA, Hunter LTB, Slotow R (2007) Feeding habitat selection by hunting leopards in a woodland savanna: prey catchability versus abundance. Anim Behav 74:589–598

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Balme GA, Slotow R, Hunter LTB (2010) Edge effects and impact of non-protected areas in carnivore conservation: leopards in the Phinda-Mkhuze Complex, South Africa. Anim Conserv 2010:1–9

    Google Scholar 

  • Barlow ACD, Greenwood CJ, Ahmad IU et al (2010) Use of an action-selection framework of human–carnivore conflict in the Bangladesh Sundarbans. Conserv Biol 24:1338–1347

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Berger KM (2006) Carnivore–livestock conflicts: effects of subsidized predator control and economic correlates on the sheep industry. Conserv Biol 20:751–761

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bhattarai BR, Fischer K (2014) Human-tiger Panthera tigris conflict and its perception in Bardia National Park, Nepal. Oryx 48(4):522–528

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Breitenmoser U (1998) Large predators of the Alps: the fall and rise of man’s competitors. Biol Conserv 83:279–289

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carter N, Jasny M, Gurung B et al (2015) Impacts of people and tigers on leopard spatiotemporal activity patterns in a global biodiversity hotspot. Global Ecol Conserv 3:149–162

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • CEPF (2005) Ecosystem profile: eastern Himalayas region. Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund. WWF-US Asia Program, Washington, DC

    Google Scholar 

  • Chapron C, Kaczensky P, Linnell JDC et al (2014) Recovery of large carnivores in Europe’s modern human-dominated landscapes. Science 346(6216):1517–1519

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Chundawat RS, Habib B, Karanth U et al (2011) Panthera tigris. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.3. http://www.iucnredlist.org. Accessed 20 Apr 2015

  • Ciucci P, Boitani L (1998) Wolf and dog depredation on livestock in central Italy. Wildl Soc Bull 26:504–514

    Google Scholar 

  • Corlett RT (2011) Vertebrate carnivores and predation in the Oriental (Indomalayan) region. Raffles Bull Zool 59(2):325–360

    Google Scholar 

  • Dinerstein E, Loucks C, Wikramanayake E (2007) The fate of wild tigers. Bioscience 57:508–514

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DoFPS (2009) Circular notifying revised areas coverage in percentage of protected areas and biological corridors. Department of Forests and Park Services, Ministry of Agriculture and Forests, Thimphu

    Google Scholar 

  • Dorji S, Rajaratnam R, Vernes K (2012) The vulnerable red panda Ailurus fulgens in Bhutan: distribution, conservation status and management recommendations. Oryx 46(4):536–543

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Durbin LS, Hedges S, Duckworth JW et al (2008) Cuon alpinus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.3. http://www.iucnredlist.org. Accessed 20 Apr 2015

  • Edgaonkar A, Chellam R (2002) Food habit of the leopard, Panthera pardus, in the Sanjay Gandhi National Park, Maharashtra, India. Mammalia 66:353–360

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Espuno N, Lequette B, Poulle ML et al (2004) Heterogeneous response to preventive sheep husbandry during wolf recolonization of the French Alps. Wildl Soc Bull 32:1195–1208

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fleming PJS, Allen BL, Allen LR et al (2014) Management of wild canids in Australia: free-ranging dogs and red foxes. In: Glen AS, Dickman CR (eds) Carnivores of Australia: past, present and future. CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, pp 105–109

    Google Scholar 

  • Graham K, Beckerman AP, Thirgood S (2005) Human-predator-prey conflicts: ecological correlates, prey losses and patterns of management. Biol Conserv 122:159–171

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hayward MW, Jędrzejewski W, Jędrzejewska B (2012) Prey preferences of the tiger Panthera tigris. J Zool 286:221–231

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hayward MW, Lyngdoh S, Habib B (2014) Diet and prey preferences of dholes (Cuon alpinus): dietary competition with Asia’s apex predator guild. J Zool 294(4):255–266

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Henschel P, Hunter L, Breitenmoser U et al (2008) Panthera pardus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.3. Accessed 20 Apr 2015

    Google Scholar 

  • Herfindal I, Linnell JDC, Moa PF et al (2005) Does recreational hunting of lynx reduce depredation losses of domestic sheep? J Wildl Manage 69:1034–1042

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Holmern T, Nyahongo J, Roskaft E (2007) Livestock loss caused by predators outside the Serengeti National Park, Tanzania. Biol Conserv 135:518–526

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Holt BG, Jean-Philippe L, Borregaard MK et al (2013) An update of Wallace’s zoogeographic regions of the World. Science 339:74–77

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ikeda N (2004) Economic impacts of livestock depredation by snow leopard Uncia uncia in the Kanchenjunga Conservation Area, Nepal Himalaya. Environ Conserv 31:322–330

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Inskip C, Zimmermann A (2009) Human–felid conflict: a review of patterns and priorities worldwide. Oryx 43:18–34

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ito T (2011) Road expansion and its influence on trail sustainability in Bhutan. Forests 2:1031–1048

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jackson RM (1996) Home range, movements and habitat use of snow leopard (Uncia uncia) in Nepal. Dissertation, University of London

    Google Scholar 

  • Jackson R, Mallon D, McCarthy T et al (2008) Panthera uncia. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.3. Accessed 20 Apr 2015

    Google Scholar 

  • Johnson A, Vongkhamheng C, Hedemark M et al (2006) Effects of human-carnivore conflict on tiger (Panthera tigris) and prey populations in Lao PDR. Anim Conserv 9:421–430

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Karanth KU, Chellam R (2009) Carnivore conservation at the crossroads. Oryx 43:1–2

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Karanth KK, Nepal SK (2012) Local residents perception of benefits and losses from protected areas in India and Nepal. Environ Manage 49:372–386

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Karanth KU, Sunquist ME, Chinnappa KM (1999) Long-term monitoring of tigers: lessons from Nagarahole. In: Seidensticker J, Christie S, Jackson P (eds) Riding the tiger: tiger conservation in human-dominated landscapes. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, pp 114–122

    Google Scholar 

  • Karki JB, Pandav B, Jnawali, SR et al (2013) Estimating the abundance of Nepal’s largest population of tigers Panthera tigris. Oryx: 1–7

    Google Scholar 

  • Katel ON, Schmidt-Vogt D (2011) Forest resource use by local residents in Jigme Singye Wangchuk National Park, Bhutan: practices and perceptions of constraint. Mt Res Dev 31:325–333

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Katel ON, Pradan S, Schmidt-Vogt D (2014) A survey of livestock losses caused by Asiatic wild dogs, leopards and tigers, and the impact of predation on the livelihood of farmers in Bhutan. Wildl Res 41:300–310

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kolowski JM, Holekamp KE (2006) Spatial, temporal, and physical characteristics of livestock depredations by large carnivores along a Kenyan reserve border. Biol Conserv 128:529–541

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Li B, Zhang E, Liu Z (2009) Livestock depredation by Amur tigers in Hunchun Nature Reserve, Jilin, China. Acta Theriol Sin 29:231–238

    Google Scholar 

  • Li J, Yin H, Wang D et al (2013) Human-snow leopard conflicts in the Sanjiangyuan region of the Tibetan Plateau. Biol Conserv 166:118–123

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Linkie M, Martyr DJ, Holden J (2003) Habitat destruction and poaching threaten the Sumatran tiger in Kerinci Seblat National Park, Sumatra. Oryx 37:41–48

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lovari S, Ventimiglia M, Minder I (2013) Food habits of two leopard species, competition, climate change and upper treeline: a way to the decrease of an endangered species. Ethol Ecol Evol 25(4):305–318

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lyngdoh S, Gopi GV, Selvan KM et al (2014) Effect of interactions among ethnic communities, livestock and wild dogs (Cuon alpinus) in Arunachal Pradesh, India. Eur J Wildl Res 60:771–780

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maikhuri RK, Nautiyal S, Rao KS et al (2000) Analysis and resolution of protected area-people conflicts in Nanda Devi Biosphere Reserve, India. Environ Conserv 27(1):43–53

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mazzolli M, Graipel ME, Dunstone N (2002) Mountain lion depredation in southern Brazil. Biol Conserv 105:43–51

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McCarthy TM (2000) Ecology and conservation of snow leopards, Gobi brown bears and wild Bactrian camels in Mongolia. Dissertation,University of Massachusetts

    Google Scholar 

  • McCarthy TM, Allen PM, Fox J et al (2003) Snow leopard survival strategy. ISLT, Seattle

    Google Scholar 

  • Meriggi A, Lovari S (1996) A review of wolf predation in southern Europe: does the wolf prefer wild prey to livestock. J Appl Ecol 33:1561–1571

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mishra C (1997) Livestock depredation by large carnivores in the Indian Trans-Himalaya: conflict perceptions and conservation prospects. Environ Conserv 24:338–343

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mishra C, Prins HHT, Van Wieran SE (2001) Overstocking in the trans-Himalayan rangelands of India. Environ Conserv 28(3):279–283

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mishra C, Allen P, McCarthy T et al (2003) The role of incentive programs in conserving the snow leopard. Conserv Biol 117:1512–1520

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mishra C, Madhusudan MD, Datta A (2006) Mammals of the high altitudes of western Arunachal Pradesh, eastern Himalaya: an assessment of threats and conservation needs. Oryx 40:29–35

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • MoA (2002) Biodiversity action plan for Bhutan 2002. Ministry of Agriculture, Royal Government of Bhutan, Thimphu

    Google Scholar 

  • MoA (2009) Biodiversity action plan 2009. Ministry of Agriculture, Royal Government of Bhutan, Thimphu

    Google Scholar 

  • MoAF (2011) Land cover atlas of Bhutan. National Soil Services Centre and Planning and Policy Division, Ministry of Agriculture and Forests, Thimphu

    Google Scholar 

  • Moktan MR, Norbu L, Nirola H et al (2006) Migratory cattle grazing: an ecosystem approach to livelihood. Bhutan J Renew Nat Res 2(1):18–28

    Google Scholar 

  • Musiani M, Mamo C, Boitani L et al (2003) Wolf depredation trends and the use of fladry barriers to protect livestock in western North America. Conserv Biol 17:1538–1547

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Myers N, Mittermeier RA, Mittermeier C et al (2000) Biodiversity hotspots for conservation priorities. Nature 403:853–858

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Namgail T, Fox JL, Bhatnagar YV (2007) Carnivore-caused livestock mortality in Trans-Himalaya. Environ Manage 39:490–496

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Naughton-Treves L, Grossberg R, Treves A (2003) Paying for tolerance: rural citizens’ attitudes toward wolf depredation and compensation. Conserv Biol 17:1500–1511

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • NCD (2004) Bhutan’s biological corridor complex (living in harmony with the nature). Nature Conservation Division, Department of Forestry Services, Ministry of Agriculture and WWF Bhutan, Thimphu

    Google Scholar 

  • Norbu P (2012) The 686th bird species. http://www.kuenselonline.com. Accessed 10 Feb 2015

  • NSBoB (2009) Statistical yearbook of Bhutan. National Statistics Bureau, Royal Government of Bhutan, Thimphu

    Google Scholar 

  • Nugraha RT, Sugardjito J (2009) Assessment and management options of human-tiger conflicts in Kerinci Seblat National Park, Sumatra, Indonesia. Mammal Study 34(3):141–154

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nur N, Jahncke J, Herzog MP et al (2011) Where the wild things are: predicting hotspots of seabird aggregations in the California Current System. Ecol Appl 21:2241–2257

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Nyhus P, Fischer H, Madden F et al (2003) Taking the bite out of wildlife damage: the challenges of wildlife compensation schemes. Conserv Prac 4:37–43

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • O’Brien T, Kinnaird M, Wibisono H (2003) Crouching tigers, hidden prey: Sumatran tiger and prey populations in a tropical forest landscape. Anim Conserv 6:131–139

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Odden J, Linnell JDC, Moa PF et al (2002) Lynx predation on domestic sheep in Norway. J Wildl Manage 66:98–105

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Odden J, Herfindal I, Linnel JDC et al (2008) Vulnerability of domestic sheep to lynx predation in relation to roe deer density. J Wildl Manage 72(1):276–282

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ogada MO, Woodroffe R, Oguge NO et al (2003) Limiting depredation by African carnivores: the role of livestock husbandry. Conserv Biol 17:152–1530

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Oli MK, Taylor IR, Rogers ME (1994) Snow leopard Panthera uncia predation of livestock: an assessment of local perceptions in the Annapurna conservation area, Nepal. Biol Conserv 68:63–68

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Olson DM, Dinerstein E (2002) The Global 200: priority ecoregions for global conservation. Ann MO Bot Gard 89(2):199–224

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Patterson BD, Kasiki SM, Selempo E et al (2004) Livestock predation by lions (Panthera leo) and other carnivores on ranches neighboring Tsavo National Park, Kenya. Biol Conserv 119:507–516

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pennock M, Ura K (2011) Gross national happiness as a framework for health impact assessment. Environ Impact Assess Rev 31:61–65

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pettigrew M, **e Y, Kang A et al (2012) Human-carnivore conflict in China: a review of current approaches with recommendations for improved management. Int Zool 7:210–226

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Polisar J, Maxit I, Scognamillo D et al (2003) Jaguars, pumas, their prey base, and cattle ranching: ecological interpretations of a management problem. Biol Conserv 109:297–310

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ramesh T, Kalle R, Sankar K et al (2012) Spatio-temporal partitioning among large carnivores in relation to major prey species in Western Ghats. J Zool 287:269–275

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rasmussen GSA (1999) Livestock predation by the painted hunting dog Lycaon pictus in a cattle ranching region of Zimbabwe: a case study. Biol Conserv 88:133–139

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • RGoB (2000) Renewable natural resources statistics of Bhutan. Ministry of Agriculture, Royal Government of Bhutan, Thimphu

    Google Scholar 

  • RGOB (2004) Bhutan biological conservation complex. Nature Conservation Division, Department of Forestry Services, Ministry of Agriculture and Forests, Royal Government of Bhutan, Thimphu

    Google Scholar 

  • RGoB (2008) The constitution of the Kingdom of Bhutan. Royal Government of Bhutan, Thimphu

    Google Scholar 

  • RGoB (2009) Bhutan biodiversity action plan 2009. National Biodiversity Center, Royal Government of Bhutan, Thimphu

    Google Scholar 

  • Saberwal VK, Gibbs JP, Chellam R et al (1994) Lion-human conflict in the Gir Forest, India. Conserv Biol 8(2):5501–5507

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sangay T (2006) Tiger (Panthera tigris) and its conservation efforts in the Kingdom of Bhutan. Dissertation, University of New England, Armidale, NSW, Australia

    Google Scholar 

  • Sangay T, Vernes K (2008) Human-wildlife conflict in the Kingdom of Bhutan: Patterns of livestock predation by large mammalian carnivores. Biol Conserv 141:1272–1282

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sangay T, Vernes K (2014) The economic cost of wild mammalian carnivores to farmers in the Himalayan Kingdom of Bhutan. Proc Bhutan Ecol Soc 1:98–111

    Google Scholar 

  • Sangay T, Wangchuk T (2005) Tiger action plan for the Kingdom of Bhutan 2006–2015. Nature Conservation Division, Department of Forests and Park Services, Thimphu

    Google Scholar 

  • Sangay T, Rajaratnam R, Vernes K (2014) Wildlife camera trap** in the Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan with recommendations for the future. In: Meek P, Fleming P (eds) Camera trap**: wildlife management and research. CSIRO Publishing, Collingwood, pp 87–98

    Google Scholar 

  • Seeland K (2000) National Park policy and wildlife problems in Nepal and Bhutan. Popul Environ 22:43–62

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Selvan KM, Gopi GV, Lyngdoh S et al (2013) Prey selection and food habits of three sympatric large carnivores in a tropical lowland forest of the Eastern Himalayan Biodiversity Hotspot. Mammal Biol 78:296–303

    Google Scholar 

  • Shah GM, Jan U, Bhat BA et al (2009) Food habits of the leopard Panthera pardus in Dachigam National Park, Kashmir, India. J Threat Species 1(3):184–185

    Google Scholar 

  • Shehzad W, Nawaz MA, Pompanon F et al (2014) Forest without prey: livestock sustain a leopard Panthera pardus population in Pakistan. Oryx: 1–6

    Google Scholar 

  • Sherub (2004) Bird report on Royal Manas National Park. Nature Conservation Division, Department of Forests, Thimphu

    Google Scholar 

  • Sogbohossou EA, de Longh HH, Sinsin B et al (2011) Human-carnivore conflict around Pendjari Biosphere Reserve, northern Benin. Oryx 45:569–578

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Soto-Shoender JR, Giuliano WM (2011) Predation on livestock by large carnivores in the tropical lowlands of Guatemala. Oryx 45:561–568

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stahl P, Vandel JM, Herrenschmidt V et al (2001) Predation on livestock by an expanding reintroduced lynx population: long-term trend and spatial variability. J Appl Ecol 38:674–687

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stahl P, Vandel JM, Ruette S et al (2002) Factors affecting lynx predation on sheep in the French Jura. J Appl Ecol 39:204–216

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Steinmetz R, Seuaturien N, Chutipong W (2013) Tigers, leopards, and dholes in a half-empty forest: assessing species interactions in a guild of threatened carnivores. Biol Conserv 163:68–78

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Studsrød JE, Wegge P (1995) Park-people relationships: the case of damage caused by park animals around the Royal Bardia National Park, Nepal. Envron Conserv 22(2):133–142

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sunquist ME, Sunquist F (2002) Wild cats of the world. University of Chicago Press, Chicago

    Google Scholar 

  • Tempa T, Norbu N, Dhendup P et al (2011) Results from a camera trap** exercise for estimating tiger population size in the lower foothills of Royal Manas National Park. Ugyen Wangchuck Institute for Conservation and Environment and Royal Manas National Park, Royal Government of Bhutan, Lamai Gompa

    Google Scholar 

  • Tharchen L (2013) Protected areas and biodiversity of Bhutan. CDC Printers, Kolkata

    Google Scholar 

  • Treves A, Karanth KU (2003) Human-carnivore conflict and perspectives on carnivore management worldwide. Conserv Biol 17:149–1499

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tshering K (2009) Agriculture and usage of natural resources in Bhutan. J Fac Agric Shinshu Univ 45(1):33–42

    Google Scholar 

  • Wang SW (2004) The impacts of wildlife damage and conservation policies on farmer attitudes in Jigme Singye Wangchuck National Park, Bhutan. Dissertation, Cornell University

    Google Scholar 

  • Wang SW (2010) Estimating population densities and biomass of ungulates in the temperate ecosystem of Bhutan. Oryx 44:376–382

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wang SW, Macdonald DW (2006) Livestock predation by carnivores in Jigme Singye Wangchuck National Park, Bhutan. Biol Conserv 129:558–565

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wang SW, Macdonald DW (2009) The use of camera traps for estimating tiger and leopard populations in the high altitude mountains of Bhutan. Biol Conserv 142:606–613

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wang SW, Lassoie JP, Curtis P (2006) Farmer attitudes towards conservation in Jigme Singye Wangchuck National Park, Bhutan. Environ Conserv 33:1–9

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wangchuk T (2004) Predator–prey dynamics: the role of predators in the control of problem species. J Bhutan Studies 10:68–89

    Google Scholar 

  • Wangchuk T, Thinley K, Tshering K et al (2004) A field guide to the mammals of Bhutan. Department of Forestry, Ministry of Agriculture, Royal Government of Bhutan, Thimphu

    Google Scholar 

  • Wikramanayake E, Moktan V, Aziz T et al (2006) The WWF snow leopard action strategy for the Himalayan Region. World Wildlife Fund, Bhutan

    Google Scholar 

  • Wolf PJ, Taylor CA, Heske EJ et al (2015) Habitat selection by American mink during summer is related to hotspots of crayfish prey. Wildl Biol 21:9–17

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yom-Tov Y, Ashkenazi S, Viner O (1995) Cattle predation by the golden jackal Canis aureus in the Golan heights, Israel. Biol Conserv 73:19–22

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

We thank the Wildlife Conservation Division (WCD) under the Ministry of Agriculture (Bhutan), the Ugyen Wangchuk Institute for Conservation and Environment (UWICE), and the University of New England (UNE) for supporting our work in Bhutan. We also thank the Tiger Survey Team (Department of Forest and Park Services, Bhutan) for providing images of livestock kills gathered during their 2014–2015 field work and appreciate the constructive comments received from Dr. Sandro Lovari and an anonymous referee on an earlier draft of the manuscript.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geography and Planning, University of New England, Armidale, NSW, 2351, Australia

    Rajanathan Rajaratnam

  2. Ecosystem Management, University of New England, Armidale, NSW, 2351, Australia

    Karl Vernes & Tiger Sangay

  3. Ugyen Wangchuk Institute for Conservation and Environment, Bumthang, Bhutan

    Tiger Sangay

Authors
  1. Rajanathan Rajaratnam
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Karl Vernes
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Tiger Sangay
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Rajanathan Rajaratnam .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. FIZV, Rome, Italy

    Francesco M. Angelici

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2016 Springer International Publishing Switzerland

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Rajaratnam, R., Vernes, K., Sangay, T. (2016). A Review of Livestock Predation by Large Carnivores in the Himalayan Kingdom of Bhutan. In: Angelici, F. (eds) Problematic Wildlife. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-22246-2_8

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation