Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Human-Bear Conflict And Community Perceptions Of Risk In The Zanskar Region, Northern India, Kirti Chavan, Sophie M. Watts, Tsewang Namgail

Human–Wildlife Interactions

The Himalayan brown bear (Ursus arctos isabellinus) is an endangered subspecies of brown bear (U. a. spp.) and is found throughout the Himalayan region of south and central Asia. We describe the type of and the current level of human–bear conflict (HBC) with Himalayan brown bears in the Zanskar region of northern India and suggest potential mitigation methods. Between July and September 2018, we interviewed 218 households across the Zanskar region, all of whom had experienced HBC. Participants reported increasing numbers of HBC events in the last 4 years. The most common form of HBC was damage …