Profiling India - the Bannerghatta National Park

General description

The Bannerghatta National Park is located in southern India about 20 km south of the city of Bangalore. The 104 square km park is characterised by an undulating terrain with hilly areas, composed of granite sheet rocks that rarely exceed 1000 m. The valleys contain some moist deciduous forest habitat, while the rest of the park is dominated by dry scrubland and dry deciduous areas. The Suvarnamukhi stream and 23 watering holes supply year-round water that sets the park’s habitats apart from southern regions where water is scarce during the dry season.

Importance for conservation

The park is part of Elephant Reserve Number 7, which contains the single largest population of Asian Elephants Elephas maximus in Asia. A recent census determined that around 56 of these elephants are found within Bannerghatta. The Asian Elephant is a flagship species for most of the countries in which it is found. However, despite many conservation measures its survival continues to be threatened by fragmentation, degradation and isolation of its natural habitats in addition to human-elephant conflict (HEC). Bannerghatta provides a natural and protected habitat for this threatened species and is also rich in the diversity of other flora and fauna.

Conservation concerns

The population density of elephants within Bannerghatta is relatively high at 0.54 per square km. This density, combined with the narrow dimensions of the park and the close proximity of 120 villages and farmland, has led to serious human-elephant conflict (HEC) problems on the margins of the park. With more than half of the local villagers relying on agriculture for their livelihoods and over 4193 elephant damage-related compensation claims between 1999 and 2005, tensions between local people and the elephants are becoming acute. It is still not fully understood why elephants raid crops but resolving HEC issues remains one of the key areas in ensuring long term viable populations of Asian Elephants in India.

Achievements to date

Since 2004 A Rocha India, in conjunction with the state government Forest Department and Asian Nature Conservation Foundation, has carried out a study on human-elephant conflict issues in the park. The study assessed the patterns of conflict, and its intensity and distribution across the park. The outcomes of the project have built up a clearer picture of the pattern of habitat usage by elephants in relation to seasonal cropping rotations, developed understanding of the nature and intensity of village raids by elephants, and mapped and assessed the efficacies of the different elephant barrier mechanisms within the park. In addition overall land use within the area was mapped through GIS and remote sensing techniques.

Vision for the future

A Rocha India intends to build on the survey work that began in 2004 by studying the relative effectiveness of the different ways to tackle human-elephant conflict in the area. The results of this will eventually become part of the management recommendations to be used by the local park managers and state Forest Department in their park management strategies. These strategies are expected to ultimately benefit the local subsistence farming communities through the reduction of HECs. The outputs of the study will also be highly beneficial to the research community investigating HECs around the world. As a logical extension of this research work, an environment education programme has been planned for the community living around the national park. The programme is directed at raising awareness of the importance of the delicate ecological landscape in the lives of the local villages and encouraging them to work within its diversity and limitations to conserve the forest.