Human-Cheetah Conflict

Human-wildlife conflict can be defined as “the situation that arises when behavior of a nonpest, wild animal species poses a direct and recurring threat to the livelihood or safety of a person or a community and, in response, persecution of the species ensues” (Inskip and Zimmerman, 2009).

Consider a time in which you have personally dealt with an unwanted pest. What was the outcome? Could you have handled the situation differently? Reflecting on this experience will allow you to connect on a more personal level with the farmers of Africa and the conflict that arises between them and nearby cheetahs.

Despite measures to protect the cheetah, it is important to recognize that 77% of cheetah range is on unprotected land (Durant et al., 2017). Further, the average home range of a cheetah is 1651 square kilometers, which could potentially overlap 21 farms (Marker et al., 2008).

Knowing that 77% of the cheetah range is outside of protected areas, consider alternative methods that you would propose to protect the cheetah.

Cheetahs enter into conflict with humans due to their potential to predate on livestock animals as well as exotic species found on game farms. 

Game farming generates large amounts of income by allowing tourists to take photographs and trophy hunt. Game farms also produce meat and allow the sale of antelope. 

Human-cheetah conflict is often prominent in areas where natural prey numbers are low and measures to protect livestock are inadequate.

Below: The map illustrates reported livestock and farmed game losses to cheetahs and other predators in three african countries as reported in interviews with farmers and National Problem Animal Control Incidents.

Below: The map illustrates "reported financial losses to cheetahs and other predators in four African countries as reported in interviews with farmers or from compensation payouts."

Even though the numbers representing financial loss may appear low, cheetahs have the ability to cause significant financial impact on impoverished families. However, it is important to note that cheetahs are often blamed for the depredation of livestock regardless if significant evidence leads back to the cheetah.

Carnivores can impose additional financial burdens on livestock and game farmers through the additional loss of potential revenue, such as that from wool, milk, or future offspring (Mertens and Promberger, 2001). Farmers also bear indirect costs by investing money in strategies to prevent depredation.

Current strategies used to mitigate cheetah predation on livestock & exotic game species pose indirect financial costs to farmers.

What ideas come to mind when considering ways in which community organizations could help to mitigate direct and indirect financial costs due to cheetah depredation?

Oftentimes, it is more than the loss of livestock that causes financial hardship on the farming communities. The presence of cheetahs can leave livestock vulnerable and panicked which can lead to reduced feeding times and the inevitable slowing of weight gain (Howery and DeLiberto, 2004). Moreover, the ownership of livestock confers social and cultural value. Loss of livestock is often associated with a loss of social standing. Individuals can be ostracized from their communities if large amounts of livestock loss ensue (Dickman et al., 2018).

How could education help to mitigate non financial costs associated with the human-cheetah conflict?

How might climate change impact the severity of the human-cheetah conflict?

Conflict-related killings that occur outside of protected areas often outnumber other forms of cheetah mortality. However, perimeter fencing can result in habitat fragmentation which is also detrimental to cheetah populations.

Below: Anthropogenic Mortality of Cheetahs in Three African Countries Determined by Interviews and Investigations.

“The determination of people to kill or exclude cheetahs is partly driven by how significant a problem the species are perceived to be, and by the person’s willingness and ability to act on those perceptions. A complex array of social, economic, psychological, political, and cultural factors affect these drivers.” - Dickman et al., 2018

The most urgent priorities for reducing human-cheetah conflict are to limit costs (direct, indirect, financial, and nonfinancial) and to provide/improve benefits (incentives).

Below: Current practices performed by the Cheetah Conservation Fund to help mitigate human-cheetah conflict.

Consider pledging to make a commitment to raise awareness about the threats cheetahs face, a promise to making a change to protect cheetahs, and assisting others in creating a solution to reduce human-cheetah conflict around the world.

Consider using the critical thinking questions found throughout the Story Map (highlighted in red) and creating a SOLE (Self Organized Learning Environment) to implement within your classroom. These questions will allow to learners to collaborate and devise additional solutions to help mitigate the human-cheetah conflict.

Boast, L., (2014). Exploring the Causes of and Mitigation Options for Human-Predator Conflict on Game Ranches in Botswana. PhD thesis, University of Cape Town, South Africa.

Butler, J.R.A., (2000). The economic costs of wildlife predation on livestock in Gokwe communal land Zimbabwe. Afr. J. Ecol. 38, 23–30.

[@ccfcheetah]. (2016, January 12). Enjoy this great photo of Merlot giving the camera some 'tude. [Instagram photograph]. Retrieved from  https://www.instagram.com/p/BCvxDsXS3b7/ 

[@ccfcheetah]. (2016, March 9). Where humans are the problem they can also be the solution. The rising trade in cheetahs as luxury pets in the Middle East is helping to drive critical populations of the wild cats to extinction. Up to two-thirds of cheetah cubs being smuggled across the war-torn Horn of Africa will die en route. Thankfully, the nations at both ends of the trade have now agreed that urgent action is needed. Photo and article can be found on our Twitter account. [Instagram photograph]. Retrieved from  https://www.instagram.com/p/BCvxDsXS3b7/ 

[@ccfcheetah]. (2016, March 21). Aw c'mon, just five more minutes? Happy Monday everyone! 🐱 [Instagram photograph. Retrieved from  https://www.instagram.com/p/BDOd0LUS3cs/ 

[@ccfcheetah]. (2016, April 8). A cheetah's fur is covered in solid black spots, and so is their skin! The black fur actually grows out of black spots on their skin. Happy Friday everyone! [Instagram photograph]. Retrieved from  https://www.instagram.com/p/BD80tMjy3fn/ 

[@ccfcheetah]. (2016, April 16). Happy  #Caturday ! Enjoy this adorable photo of a cub snuggling up to mom. A mother cheetah usually cares for 2 to 8 cubs per litter, but Cubs are often the target of other predators and many unfortunately do not survive past the first year. [Instagram photograph]. Retrieved from  https://www.instagram.com/p/BERmfJ8y3a0/ 

[@ccfcheetah]. (2016, May 25).Whoooosh! Check out CCF in the new Wayfairing Views blog post today, link shared on our Facebook page! Enjoy reading an overview as to why cheetahs are endangered, how Laurie started CCF, our programs, visiting CCF and Namibia, and what you can do to help! 🐱 Photo credit to Peter Scheufler of CCF [Instagram photograph]. Retrieved from  https://www.instagram.com/p/BF2JTANS3dA/ 

[@ccfcheetah]. (2018, July 11). Obi-Wan was released into Erindi Private Game Reserve a little over six years ago, along with three other male cheetahs (Omdillo, Chester, and Anakin) aka the ‘Leopard Pen Boys’. As you can see, Obi is doing pretty well for himself after all these years. [Instagram photograph]. Retrieved from  https://www.instagram.com/p/BlHTj8Zn4Jj/ 

[@ccfcheetah]. (2018, August 22). Forest Stewardship Council (@fsc_us) posted this great overview of CCF's habitat restoration efforts and our biomass energy development efforts.. [Instagram photograph]. Retrieved from  https://www.instagram.com/p/BmzjDTjn5tD/ 

[@ccfcheetah]. (2018, September 10). A great article on CCF's fight to end the illegal trade in cheetahs and how you can help. “Pet” cheetahs rarely survive past a year after falling victim to the illegal trade, contributing to the dwindling population numbers. With your help, we can put an end to this heartbreaking trade of exotic pets. [Instagram photograph]. Retrieved from  https://www.instagram.com/p/BnkWRkrHxts/ 

[@ccfcheetah]. (2019, January 12). Hello to our CT and NY cheetah friends! Join us at Grace Farms (@gracefarmsct) in New Canaan, CT for a film screening and discussion on Friday, January 18th.Cheetahs are extinct in more than 20 countries and there are less than 8,000 in the world today. What's being done to save the cheetahs and how can you help? Join Mark Fowler, GFF’s Nature Initiative Director, and Richard Wiese (@richardwiese) President of The Explorers Club and Emmy Award-winning Producer, for a discussion and film screening featuring travels to Africa and talks with Dr. Laurie Marker, founder of the Cheetah Conservation Fund. [Instagram photograph. Retrieved from  https://www.instagram.com/p/BsimqNTnP1z/ 

[@ccfcheetah]. (2019, January 24). ICYMI, on December 4th, International Cheetah Day, National Geographic Wildlife Watch shared an article on the efforts to end cheetah smuggling supplying the illegal pet trade in Somaliland. [Instagram photograph. Retrieved from  https://www.instagram.com/p/BtCuLcElEOC/  

[@ccfcheetah]. (2019, March 10). Today we’re sharing an article published on Mongabay.com ( @mongabay ) by some of the world's leading big cat experts: Eight Iranian wildlife conservationists have been imprisoned by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps since January 2018, facing charges of espionage. All those in detention — Niloufar Bayani, Taher Ghadirian, Houman Jowkar, Sepideh Kashani, Amirhossein Khaleghi Hamidi, Abdolreza Kouhpayeh, Sam Radjabi and Morad Tahbaz — are among the most knowledgeable, experienced, and capable conservationists working in Iran. All are accused of spying under the guise of conducting cheetah surveys by using camera traps to collect sensitive information. But camera-traps are an extremely poor tool for spying. Essentially a very simple camera with a sensor that detects motion, camera traps take photos of wildlife that pass directly in front of the lens. They are indispensable for monitoring shy species like Asiatic cheetahs, but the cat must pass within the sensor’s very limited range — around 5-10 meters — to trigger the unit. They cannot produce useful images of Iran’s military installations or other sensitive sites, as the prosecution claims. For decades, the use of camera traps has been a standard approach around the world for monitoring rare, low-density species, particularly large carnivores such as the cheetah. [Instagram photograph]. Retrieved from  https://www.instagram.com/p/Bu2oA20nj74/ 

[@ccfcheetah]. (2019, July 8). Happy birthday, Aleya! Last week one of our resident Livestock Guarding Dogs turned 9 years old! Aleya was once a breeding female but now enjoys spending her days protecting our goat and sheep herds. Thank you for all you do, Aleya! [Instagram photograph]. Retrieved from  https://www.instagram.com/p/BzrhK5aB17o/ 

[@ccfcheetah]. (2019, September 23). In 2013, CCF teamed up with Viget, a full-service interactive agency that helps plan, design, build, and measure successful websites and digital products, located in Northern Virginia. The team at Viget created a couple of unique infographics for CCF focusing on cheetah populations and the threats faced by the species in the wild. Though the population of cheetahs in Namibia has stabilized, the world’s population continues to dwindle. Sadly, the graphics needed an update to reflect current populations from 10,000 cheetahs in the wild in 2013, to fewer than 7,500 today. [Instagram photograph. Retrieved from  https://www.instagram.com/p/B2xws7vBnRG/ 

[@ccfcheetah]. (2020, January 15). Lots of activity in CCF’s Model Farm! We are now in Boer Goat kidding and Damara Fat Tailed Sheep lambing season. These animals are integral to our Model Farm Program where we aim to help educate farmers throughout Namibia on the best livestock management practices. One of those practices is having all the kids and lambs born together in one time of the year. This means they can grow up together until they are big enough to go out with the herd, reducing the chances of an easy meal for a predator. If there are no young animals out with the herd throughout the year it means less losses in a farmer's livestock herd. Research has shown that farmers using this breeding strategy can see a reduction in livestock losses up to 60%. [Instagram photograph]. Retrieved from  https://www.instagram.com/p/B7XY-URBBBC/ 

[@ccfcheetah]. (2020, June 18). One of my favourite cheetah moments happened when Savannah jumped up into this tree to get an elevated perspective to search for prey. The positioning of her stance, to me, felt so free and powerful. This photo tells a story of the ‘thriving cheetah’. The golden light during this evening’s sunset was an added bonus! [Instagram photograph]. Retrieved from  https://www.instagram.com/p/CBk_oVchTwn/ 

[@ccfcheetah]. (2020, June 18). We were so lucky to have Savannah near Camp Elephant in Erindi over the last three months. This was the last photo I took of her before she took down an impala right before our eyes.[Instagram photograph]. Retrieved from  https://www.instagram.com/p/CBmLJuIJbiZ/ 

Dickman, A.J., (2009). Key determinants of conflict between people and wildlife, particularly large carnivores, around Ruaha National Park, Tanzania. PhD thesis, University College London, United Kingdom.

Dickman, A., Rust, N. A., Boast, L. K., Wykstra, M., Richmond-Coggan, L., Klein, R., . . . Marker, L. (2018). The Costs and Causes of Human-Cheetah Conflict on Livestock and Game Farms. Cheetahs: Biology and Conservation, 173-189. doi:10.1016/b978-0-12-804088-1.00013-7

Durant, S., Mitchell, N., Groom, R., Pettorelli, N., Ipavec, A., Jacobson, A., Woodroffe, R., Bohm, M., Hunter, L., Becker, M., Broekhuis, F., Bashir, S., Andresen, L., Aschenborn, O., Beddiaf, M., Belbachir, F., Belchabir-Bazi, A., Berbash, A., Brandao de Matos Machado, I., Breitenmoser, C., Chege, M., Cillers, D., Davies-Mostert, H., Dickman, A.J., Ezekiel, F., Farhardinia, M.S., Funston, P., Henschel, P., Horgan, J., de Iongh, H., Jowkar, H., Klein, R., Lindsey, P., Marker, L., Marnewick, K., Melzheimer, J., Merkle, J., M’soka, J., Msuha, M., O’Neill, H., Parker, M., Purchase, G., Sahailou, S., Saidu, Y., Samna, A., Schmidt-Küntzel, A., Selebatso, E., Sogbohossou, E.A., Soultan, A., Stone, E., van der Meer, E., van Vuuren, R., Wykstra, M., Young- Overton, K.,(2017). Disappearing spots, the global decline of cheetah and what it means for conservation. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 114 (3), 528–533.

Frank, L.G., Woodroffe, R., Ogada, M.O., 2005. People and predators in Laikipia district, Kenya. In: Woodroffe, R., Thirgood, S., Rabinowitz, A. (Eds.), People and Wildlife: Conflict or Coexistence. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, United Kingdom, pp. 286–304.

Gusset, M., Swarner, M., Mponwane, L., Keletile, K., McNutt, J., (2009). Human–wildlife conflict in northern Botswana: livestock predation by Endangered African wild dog Lycaon pictus and other carnivores. Oryx 43 (01), 67–72.

Howery, L.D., DeLiberto, T.J., (2004). Indirect effects of carnivores on livestock foraging behavior and production. Sheep and Goat Research Journal 19, 53–57.

Inskip, C., Zimmerman., (2009). Human-felid conflict: a review of patterns and priorities worldwide. Oryx 43 (1), 18-34.

Klein, R., (2013). An Assessment of Human Carnivore Conflict in the Kalahari Region of Botswana. MSc thesis, Rhodes University, South Africa.

Maddox, T., (2003). The Ecology of Cheetahs and Other Large Carnivores in A Pastoralist-Dominated Buffer Zone. PhD thesis, University College London, United Kingdom.

Marker, L.,(2002). Aspects of Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) Biology, Ecology and Conservation Strategies on Namibian Farmlands. PhD thesis, University of Oxford, United Kingdom.

Marker, L.L., Dickman, A.J., Mills, M.G.L., Macdonald, D.W., (2003). Aspects of the management of cheetahs, Acinonyx jubatus jubatus, trapped on Namibian farmlands. Biol. Conserv. 114 (3), 401–412.

Marker, L.L., Dickman, A.J., Mills, M.G.L., Jeo, R.M., Macdonald, D.W., (2008). Spatial ecology of cheetahs (Acinonyx jubatus) on north-central Namibian farmlands. J. Zool. 274, 226–238.

Mertens, A., Promberger, C.,(2001). Economic aspects of large carnivore-livestock conflicts in Romania. Ursus 12,173–180.

Okello, M.M., Bonham, R., Hill, T., (2014). The pattern and cost of carnivore predation on livestock in Maasai homesteads of Amboseli ecosystem, Kenya: Insights from a carnivore compensation programme. Int. J. Biodivers. Conserv. 6 (7), 502–521.

Rabinowitz, A.R., (1986). Jaguar predation on domestic livestock in Belize. Wildl. Soc. Bull. (1973–2006) 14 (2), 170–174.

Rust, N.A., Marker, L.L., (2013b). Costs of carnivore coexistence on communal and resettled land in Namibia. Environ. Conserv. 41 (1), 45–53.

Selebatso, M., Moe, S., Swenson, J., (2008). Do farmers support cheetah Acinonyx jubatus conservation in Botswana despite livestock depredation? Oryx 42, 430–436.

Thorn, M., Green, M., Dalerum, F., Bateman, P.W., Scott, D.M., (2012). What drives human–carnivore conflict in the North West Province of South Africa? Biol. Conserv. 15 (1), 23–32.

Woodroffe, R., Lindsey, P., Romanach, S., Stein, A., Symon, M.K. ole Ranah, 2005. Livestock predation by endangered African wild dogs (Lycaon pictus) in northern Kenya. Biol. Conserv. 124, 225–234.