Human-Wildlife Conflict: Causes, Consequences and Mitigation Strategies Toward Coexistence

Abstract

ABSTRACT

Human-wildlife conflict has become one of the most pressing challenges at the interface of biodiversity conservation and rural and urban livelihoods worldwide. As human populations expand into former wildlife habitat, encounters between people and animals, from large carnivores and elephants to raptors, primates and rodents, are growing more frequent and consequential. This narrative review provides a synthesis of recent and foundational research and literature on the ecological, socio-economic and behavioural drivers of HWC, impacts on human wellbeing, livelihoods, wildlife and the mitigation strategies that have been tested on different continents. Causes considered include habitat loss and fragmentation, resource scarcity, individual animal behaviour and habituation, and demographic and livelihood factors shaping exposure and vulnerability. Consequences include economic damages, physical harm and mortality, psychological distress and hardship, gendered burdens, and retaliatory killings that pose a risk to already endangered species. Mitigation strategies reviewed include physical barriers and emerging technologies, compensation and insurance schemes, community-based monitoring, connectivity-sensitive land-use planning, and a growing movement to reframe conflict management around coexistence rather than tolerance alone. The review concludes that there is need to develop context-specific, socially legitimate and multidisciplinary approaches that involve the lived experience of affected communities and include ecological knowledge in order to achieve durable solutions.