Bengaluru: The Western Ghats, which is home to a large number of elephants, is under threat due to increased human activity. A new study by Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) has also questioned the methodology used to assess the elephant population and warns that the current elephant population figures may vary from the actual numbers.
Across India there is little reliable information on the status of Asian elephant population or their spatial distribution. The study warns that without accurate information about these parameters, it is impossible to effectively conserve the species, particularly in the face of increasing habitat loss, conflict with humans and poaching.
“Many methods are used to assess elephant distribution today, for instance the ‘presence-only’ method can be highly inaccurate. What we use in this study is more reliable and can be easily applicable over large landscapes,” said Dr K. Ullas Karanth, Director for Science – Asia, WCS, and co-author of the study.
Using an occupancy sampling and modelling approach that fully addresses problems ubiquitous in field survey data, scientists at WCS India and Centre for Wildlife Studies mapped elephant distribution across the 38,000 sq km of Malnad landscape. It was part of a larger initiative aimed at assessing tiger and prey distribution across the landscape. It was conducted in collaboration with the Karnataka Forest Department. “This method takes into account the simple fact that we may not actually end up seeing elephants - or signs of their presence - even if they are present at a location,” explained Devcharan Jathanna, lead author of the study.
“We found that human presence played a key role in determining where elephants were found, much more so than environmental attributes,” Jathanna added. Only 64% of the 21,000 sq km of ‘elephant habitat’ in the landscape was occupied by elephants, emphasizing this point.
The study underscores the need for strict regulations to secure this critical landscape. Importantly, the research establishes a reliable protocol to study elephant distribution, one that can be used by governmental and non-governmental agencies engaged in elephant conservation throughout their range.
