How silence on predator problems can worsen human-wildlife conflict

“Shoot, shovel and shut up” – the three S’s. It’s a mantra that has been used by some farmers for many years as a strategy to deal with their carnivore problems. Lethal control, followed by burying the evidence and not telling anyone about it. When farmers fear retribution from the Department of Wildlife and National Parks (DWNP) for killing carnivores, they remain quiet about those that are shot, trapped or poisoned on their farms. The problem with this approach is that it disguises from the authorities the severity of human-wildlife conflict issues — issues that for many are ongoing and for some, increasing in line with stresses caused by climate change and dwindling wild prey numbers.
Human-wildlife conflict is a growing concern around the country and one that the government and NGOs are trying to address with various new methods and approaches. When highlighting conflict hot spot areas and addressing the issues throughout the country, authorities rely on the DWNP’s Problem Animal Control (PAC) Reports and their records on the number of carnivores killed by farmers. These data, kept for decades and regularly analysed by government and conservation NGOs, shows trends in conflict, areas that need particular help and common challenges around the country. Through these data, one may then consider deep rooted drivers behind the conflict. Additionally, these data are the evidence needed to fuel mitigating action against conflict. But help will not arrive if no records of existing conflict exist and no one knows that there is a problem on your farm.
One of the primary reasons that farmers stay silent on these issues is their fear of prosecution from authorities. There is definitely some confusion when it comes to the use of lethal control of wildlife, but the Wildlife Conservation and National Parks Act of 1992 is the prevailing legal document on these issues and protects farmers who use lethal control to protect their lives or livelihoods (i.e. if they are protecting their livestock). If a farmer has a reasonable belief that their livestock is under threat, they can use lethal control to protect that livestock. A farmer must, however, present the trophies of any wildlife carcass to DWNP within seven days of the killing for it to remain legal. Conversely, burying entire carcasses makes the killings illegal and farmers could be prosecuted if discovered using this practice. And it is also important to note that compensation is withheld if the carnivore responsible for the damage is killed. But apart from that, no legal retribution will be administered, so long as the carnivore in question is not wearing a collar. Killing a wild animal that has a tracking collar on it is a crime, and should be reported to authorities immediately, especially as collars can be tracked even after the animal is dead and the collar can be found even once if it has been destroyed.
Cheetahs, wild dogs and lions are covered by extra protection by the Government of Botswana due to their threatened status. Cheetahs are Africa’s most endangered big cat; African wild dogs are Africa’s second most endangered carnivore and lions have lost half of their world population in the last 20 years. As such, extra protection was granted to these species in an attempt to minimize their persecution by farmers. However, livestock attacks still do occur and the Wildlife Conservation and National Parks Act still protects farmers who defend their livestock against these carnivores. Because of the low numbers of these species, it is high recommended that lethal control not be sought unless absolutely necessary and all relevant authorisation by the DWNP should be sought before proceeding. It is also important to remember that removing carnivores from your farm, as was detailed in a recent article about translocations, can cause more carnivores to descend onto your farm by catalyzing the “sinkhole effect”. By killing one individual considered to be problematic, you can end up having more predator problems by creating a void, an empty territory that many transient carnivores try to fill all at once. Thankfully, there is are a lot of people doing great work nationally, regionally and internationally and trialing all manner of innovative methods to reduce conflict in a manner that is not only non-lethal, but beneficial to farm productivity, livestock health as well as cognizant of the sacrifices made by farmers by living in close proximity to wildlife. As previous issues have demonstrated, co-existing with a diversity if life on healthy rangelands, is not only good for the conservationists and tourists, but for all human life as it encourages healthy ecosystem function and service provision.
You may think that by practicing the “Shoot, shovel and shut up” technique that you are protecting yourself, but what really transpires is a black hole in the knowledge of how pervasive human-wildlife conflict is in the country and blinds authorities to the issues being felt on the ground. Without the data about how bad the conflict situations are, wildlife authorities are unable to help. Let’s work towards transparency on human-wildlife conflict issues so that we can work towards supporting fellow farmers and developing long-term solutions to mitigate human-wildlife conflict. Report your problems consistently so that authorities can clearly see how often conflict affects farmers.
So, the next time you have a problem, don’t practice the three S’s and “shoot, shovel and shut up”, but rather practice the three Rs. Report, repeat and reap the benefits.