Animal-attack spots to be identified

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-12-31/kozhikode/36078901_1_wild-animals-wild-boars-study-team

MALAPPURAM: As man-animal conflicts occur on a more or less regular basis at areas bordering forests across the state, Kerala Forest Research Institute (KFRI) plans to identify locations that are vulnerable to attacks of wild animals.

The special research group of the institute will study the types of animals which are straying into human habitations, the nature of attacks, the human loss, cattle loss and crop loss in attacks, the specifications of the locations, the elements that are attracting animals into the particular areas, including the availability of water and the nature of crops in the region. The study would be conducted with the help of the official records and field study on the incidents of man-animal conflicts occurred across the state during the last ten years.

The study will help to identify the issues of each region and to plan the preventive measures exclusively for each location. Dr E A James, scientist, Wild Life Department, KFRI, who is heading the study team said that the majority of the issues were local ones and they could not deal all the issues on the basis of same parameteres.

The team will collect details of each incident from public and also from the officials. "We need location oriented data. The issues in Wayanad are different from the issues in Idukki or Thrissur. We have to identify the real reason behind each issue," he said.

In the beginning, the research group will collect the details of the incidents of straying of wild animals into the human habitation included in the records of forest department for the last ten years and also collect information directly from public of each panchayat in these districts.

The research group has already started the study in Thrissur, Palakkad and Malappuram districts. In Thrissur, the team has found that 32 incidents of attacks of wild elephants have been reported in the district during last three years. Wild boars also pose a major threat to the farm lands in the district. The research group has also looking at effective methods to prevent animals straying into human habitations.