How farmers and wildlife biologists in Karnataka devised a unique method to manage man-animal conflict

The Maharashtra State Forest Department never had to deal with elephants until 2002, when seven pachyderms entered Sindhudurg from Karnataka and then decided to settle there. Their sudden arrival created considerable agitation among locals, and instances of man-animal conflict started to trickle in. Several states tried to tackle this issue with “engineering” solutions, but failed. Now, wildlife biologists, forest department and farmers in the north Kanara district of Karnataka have taken a more community-based approach to manage the conflict, which is turning out to be fruitful.

​Nandesh Patil, a farmer in the Haliyal town of Karnataka, carefully mixes red chilli pods and tobacco with some other ingredients. The mixture is bundled up using dry grass and paper, and is lit lightly to produce smoke. Coughing and sneezing, Patil proudly claims that this chudi (grass bundle) has helped him drive away elephants from his farm many times.

The 46-year-old owns 10 acre land in the Kyatangera village, on which he grows sugarcane and paddy. Elephants love to feast on these crops during their annual migration. Now Patil’s method is being hailed as one of the success stories of the Community-Based Conflict Management (CBCM) model for elephants, currently being implemented by the Wildlife Research and Conservation Society (WRCS) in north Kanara.

Community Connect

Dr Prachi Mehta, wildlife biologist and executive director of WRCS, explains that since 2011, they have been training farmers to use simple, low-cost crop guarding techniques to reduce damage by elephants in north Kanara. The model is already yielding positive results.

Dr Prachi Mehta wildlife biologist and executive director of WRCS

States such as Maharashtra and others have dug Elephant Proof Trenches (EPT), set up solar-powered fences and have tried other ‘engineering solutions’, but failed miserably. The forest department needs to understand that they are dealing with an exceptionally intelligent animal with a five kg brain. Hence, we have been advocating that they change their approach and begin involving the community,”

Mehta added that the CBCM was being implemented extensively in Africa and was a major success.

In fact, as per a WRCS study, 80% of barriers (including EPT and Solar fences) had lost their effectiveness by the second year of their construction. “When these solutions start failing across the country, the next solution being looked at is capture and removal or relocation. But, studies by biologists have shown that apart from being unscientific, these methods were also unsuccessful,” says Mehta, adding that the bigger worry is that some states have even demanded that elephants be declared vermins and be “put down”.

According to her, betterment of irrigation facilities has led to a rise in the area under sugarcane and paddy cultivation. This has led to encroachment on forest land, and the trend shows that the human-elephant conflict in north Kanara will only increase with time.

“If elephants and locals have to co-exist, it is important that adverse impact of each other’s presence and activities be minimised. Through this project, we have introduced the concept of CBCM, which empowers the local community in effective guarding methods and in reducing crop loss due to elephants,” says Mehta. Admitting that the CBCM model is yet to become popular in India, she informs that through this project, they are setting examples for the community that crops can be protected using simple and low-cost techniques.
“Elephants are discouraged from entering fields using deterrent methods, such as night guarding, trip alarms and chilli smoke. In case they do enter the fields, they are driven away using effective repellent techniques,” says Mehta, adding that even these methods are not foolproof and combinations of several deterrents have to be used, as elephants are quick learners. Farmers using these methods, however, have been able to save up to 75% of their crops.

But even as one looks at the positives of the CBCM model, its challenges cannot be ignored. “Farmers don’t get convinced easily. In fact, when we started in 2011 in Karnataka, there was hardly any support. Farmers made fun of us and our ideas. Another major issue is that they want immediate solutions and expect the government or the forest department to tackle this issue,” shares Mehta.

Tools: Doorbells, Chilli and Crackers

Kyatangera resident Patil points to a 2015 photograph of his partly ravaged sugarcane field, smiles, and says he could save 70% of his crop simply by using fire crackers and chilli smoke.

Like Patil, nearly 500 farmers in 12 villages in the Yellapore and Haliyal forest divisions, who have elephants invading their fields right from August till February, have now formed Crop Protection Committees (CPC). In addition, the WRCS encourages them to protect their own crop and trains them to use objects such as doorbells to set up trip alarms, chilli powder, crackers and even swinging fire balls.

Kyatangera villagers say the forest department alerts them almost 10-15 days ahead of an elephant herd’s arrival near their village. The CPC then gets into action and follows the set protocol, under which the first task is to ready watch towers on a few trees around the farms for night guards.

Ravi Yellapore, project officer with WRCS for the CBCM project in north Kanara, explains the early warning system. He says elephants generally enter fields at night. So, after carrying out several experiments, they started training farmers in installing trip alarm bells. “A nylon rope is attached to a battery operated doorbell available in market. The boundary of the farm is secured with this rope. As soon as elephants attempt to enter, the nylon rope trips the alarm and plays loud music. It startles the animals and also alerts farmers about their presence,” he shares.

Another popular method is using chilli ropes. Elephants can smell their way to ripe, harvested or stored crops. Farmers tie ropes dipped in green chilli and tobacco powder paste around the harvested crop.

A farmer says

We also make chilli curtains. The same paste, along with waste engine oil, is spread on cloth and several of these are hung on fences. These not only irritate the elephants but also mask the smell of ripe or harvested crop.”

Even after all this, if elephants manage to enter the fields, farmers burn several chilli-based deterrents that they keep ready for use almost a month ahead of the elephants’ arrival. “Chudi – an almost 10ft high grass bundle filled with red chilli pods, tobacco and coconut shells -- is hung vertically near the farm boundary and allowed to burn slowly, producing a thick acrid smoke,” shares Patil, adding that the smell of chilli mixed with tobacco irritates elephants.

Trained farmers also use catapults to fire noisy crackers to scare away the animals. Care, however, is taken to not aim for any elephant’s body. Another trick being used actively is a swinging ball of fire. “A ball of old rag or cloth is dipped in kerosene and attached to one end of a long chain. The cloth is then set on fire and swung in a circular manner. There is a swooshing sound generated along with the flame, which generally drives the elephants away,” says Yellapore, adding that they have trained the forest staffers as well to do so.

“We are spending a lot of time with farmers, teaching them these methods. After seeing a reduction in their losses, even they are getting convinced about this model,” says Yellapore, adding that this also reduces the animosity that farmers feel towards these gentle giants, who eat little, but trample everything.

Even then, the WRCS members admit that the CBCM model is not 100% foolproof. One cannot use the same deterrents again and again as elephants get used to them and don’t get scared any more. “We have been training farmers to use these deterrents smartly and to mix different types, to maintain the surprise elemen,” says Dr Prachi Merchant, wildlife biologist and executive director of WRCS.

Bee Scare

That the largest mammal on land is scared of tiny bees has surely inspired several farmers in north Kanara, who have begun setting up beehives around their farms. The WRCS is also conducting experiments. After some initial success, attempts are now being made to construct low-cost beehives in clay pots, bamboo and loghives, which will not only help deter the mammoths from coming close to the farms but also provide economic benefits to farmers in the form of honey.

“It was a meeting with Dr Lucy King, head of Save The Elephant (STE) and Elephants and Bees project leader from Kenya, in 2009 that helped us initiate this new chapter,” informs Dr Mehta, adding that King gave her audio clips of bee sounds to conduct experiments in India.

Back in Karnataka, Mehta began testing the effects of buzzing bee sounds on elephants in a camp in Shimoga. It was observed that the sound actually scared the elephants. “We also wanted to see its effect on wild herds. So, we experimented in a field where wild elephants were feeding on crops. We were stunned when they fled as soon as they heard the buzzing,” she says, adding that it was understood that the highly intelligent elephants would soon figure out that these sounds were empty threats. “So, we started encouraging the farmers to set up beehive fences,” she says.

A beehive fence is a series of hives colonised by the Indian bee kept at equal distance from each other and tied to a wired fence along the periphery of a farm. “As soon as the elephants try to enter the farms, the hives shake and the bees inside come out in swarms, forcing the elephants to retreat,” says Mehta.

The WRCS is also in touch with apiculturists to ensure that beehives made in logs and pots can be colonised quickly. “Our work is showing success and farmers are giving us encouraging feedback. The only issue is that beehives can attract sloth bears and even thieves. So they have to be built in a manner that they do not attract attention,” she says.
 

Maha Forest Guards Attend Workshop

Forest guard Sunil Kuri — a year old recruit of the Maharashtra State Forest Department, who serves in the “elephant-troubled” Ajara range of the Kolhapur division -- wants to convince not only his fellow guards but also farmers that low-cost interventions do exist to keep these gentle giants at bay.

Kuri, along with eight other forest guards from Kolhapur as well as Sawantwadi, were a part of the workshop held at Kali Tiger Reserve in Karnataka by the WRCS, where the participants explored and discussed various ideas as well as debated the pros and cons of using various deterrents for elephants.

Sunil Kuri Forest Guard

“My first posting is at a location that witnesses a lot of human-elephant conflict. This workshop has helped me be aware not only of the elephant biology but also about how one can work by involving the community and use simple, yet effective, solutions.”

Forest guard Chandrakant Pavaskar, who has been with the Maharashtra forest department for the last 13 years, has spent seven of those year in areas such as Chandgadh – a high human-elephant conflict zone. He says they have been using some of the low-cost techniques, such as chilli smoke, but the real problem is the lack of support from the community. “People expect the forest department to do everything,” he says.

Meanwhile, Dr Mehta warns that in the last few years, many villagers in Dodamarg and Sawantwadi sold their farms and lands in private forests to people in Kerala and Tamil Nadu at a throwaway price. These planters have now begun clearning the forests to plant oil palms, rubber, coconut and banana for commercial use. She says such use of land should be avoided.

“We hope that the Maharashtra forest department takes a leaf out of the work being done in villages of Haliyal and Yellapore, where the conflict is extremely high compared to what they face, and yet work is being done along with the community,” says Mehta, adding that the CBCM model can easily be replicated in several villages in Maharshtra as well.