Khanyari, M. | bioRxiv Science

bioRxiv2026

Snow leopard-mediated apparent competition between wild ungulates and domestic livestock in the Trans-Himalaya

Across High Asia, snow leopards Panthera uncia share habitats with pastoralists and consume both wild and domestic herbivores. Increasing wild prey is vital for predator conservation, but its effect on livestock depredation is unclear: it could decrease depredation through apparent facilitation or increase it through apparent competition. We investigated this association using a 13-year time series dataset from Upper Spiti Landscape in the Indian Trans-Himalaya. Long-term data on elusive carnivores are rare, making this time series especially valuable for testing predator-mediated interactions. We found higher wild ungulate density was accompanied by significantly greater depredation of free-ranging livestock, and this association remained positive after bootstrapping to account for uncertainty in density estimates. These results suggest snow leopard-mediated apparent competition between wild and domestic herbivores. We recommend conservation efforts that increase wild prey must also integrate effective livestock protection and support strategies to enhance coexistence between predators, prey and pastoralists.

ecology↗

bioRxiv2021

Key informant perceptions on wildlife hunting in India during the COVID-19 lockdown

Lockdowns intended to control the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in major socioeconomic upheavals across the world. While there were numerous reports of these lockdowns benefiting wildlife by reducing human movement and habitat disturbance, increased hunting during these lockdowns emerged as a conservation concern, particular in tropical Asia and Africa. We used online interviews with key informants including wildlife researchers, enforcement staff and NGO employees (N=99), and media reports (N=98), to examine the impacts of Indias COVID-19 lockdown (March-May 2020) on wildlife hunting across the country. We asked whether and how hunting patterns changed during the lockdown, and explored socioeconomic and institutional factors underlying these changes. Over half the interviewees spread over 43 administrative districts perceived hunting (mammals, in particular) to have increased during the lockdown relative to a pre-lockdown reference period. Interviewees identified household consumption (53% of respondents) and sport and recreation (34%) as main motivations for hunting during the lockdown, and logistical challenges for enforcement (36%), disruption of food supply (32%), and need for recreational opportunities (32%) as key factors associated with hunting during this period. These insights were corroborated by statements by experts extracted from media articles. Collectively, our findings suggest that the COVID-19 lockdown potentially increased hunting across much of India, and emphasize the role of livelihood and food security in mitigating threats to wildlife during such periods of acute socioeconomic perturbation.

ecology↗