Wild animals frequently "enter cities", and it is urgent to build a new model of scientific coexistence

This year, Siberian tigers have invaded villages, Asian elephants have headed north, wild boars have wandered around Nanjing, and great bustards have returned to Beijing's Tongzhou... What are the new trends in wild animals "entering cities"? How can the two coexist?

This year can be called the year of public attention to wild animals. In the spring, the Siberian tiger "Wandashan No. 1" that entered the village was released back into the wild, and "The Siberian tiger is not afraid of anyone except the Northeastern dialect" became a popular online phrase. In the summer, the Asian elephants that had traveled all the way north to "eat, drink and shop" finally crossed the Yuanjiang River and returned safely to their original habitat. Netizens who said, "The first thing I do when I wake up every day is to see where the elephants are?" finally breathed a sigh of relief. In the fall, the wild boars that broke into the city of Nanjing caused an uproar in public opinion, and the "war of words" between the "pig-killing faction" and the "pig-protecting faction" continued. In the winter, the great bustards that loyally returned to the farmland habitat in Tongzhou District, Beijing, to overwinter, had enthusiastic volunteers on duty in the cold wind...

▲On June 7, 2021, in Xiyang Township, Jinning District, Kunming City, Yunnan Province, a group of wild elephants were photographed lying down to sleep.

Wild animals frequently "leave the mountains" and enter villages and cities, which not only shows that ecological and environmental protection measures are effective, but also, to a certain extent, sends a signal of a lack of food chain, reflecting the oversaturation of some populations and the insufficient carrying capacity of protected areas. As some wild animal populations continue to expand, it is increasingly important to build a new model for the coexistence of humans and wild animals and to systematically respond to conflicts between humans and wild animals.

We need to further expand ecological corridors and potential distribution areas to ensure the integrity and naturalness of the ecosystem, meet the development needs of wild animal populations, and keep them away from densely populated areas and areas with frequent economic activities. In the long run, relocation is also a safe way to restore wildlife habitats. Just like returning farmland to forests, it makes way for wild animals to live in. For example, Yanqing, Beijing, has gradually relocated some mountain residents, and more than 30,000 people have moved out.

If wildlife causes personal injury or property damage, local governments must provide compensation in accordance with laws and regulations, and can also take other relevant measures to resolve some of the losses caused by wildlife. For example, local governments can include eligible people in the scope of social assistance in accordance with regulations and establish channels for relief subsidies for injuries and damage. Local governments can develop comprehensive insurance for damage and include wildlife damage in the scope of forestry and agricultural policy insurance.

In order to effectively prevent and control the harm caused by wild animals and scientifically handle the relationship between wild animal protection and the vital interests of the people, relevant departments must adhere to the principle of protection priority, coordinate and balance wild animal protection and the interests of the people, establish and improve wild animal protection laws and regulations, improve the working mechanism, further improve monitoring and early warning capabilities, strengthen prevention and control, establish and improve a harm compensation system, strengthen safety education for the people in areas where wild animal harm is serious, strengthen work guarantees, and summarize the experience of pilot work, complete effectiveness evaluation, learn from each other's effective measures and good methods and practices, improve the hazard prevention and control work mechanism, and promote the formation of a development pattern of harmonious coexistence between man and nature.

▲On May 7, 2020, a large number of wild birds inhabited a shallow wetland in Chaobai River, Shunyi District, Beijing. Just a hundred meters away, nearby residents were playing in Chaobai River Forest Park. People and birds have built an ecological environment of harmonious coexistence. A group of sparrows inhabited the reeds

It should be emphasized that in order to regulate the population density of wild animals such as wild boars that have become a local disaster, it is necessary to evaluate the animal population and environmental conditions, strengthen artificial regulation, strengthen monitoring of wild animal activities, and carry out scientific regulation in a timely manner under the premise of strict scientific demonstration. Hunting quotas must be formulated based on the conditions of local animal populations, and the amount of hunting should be determined by detailed survey data from scientists.

Moreover, using guns to hunt and kill is not the only way to control the population of wild animals such as wild boars. In recent years, many new strategies have emerged to ease conflicts between humans and animals, which neither harm animals nor damage crops and threaten humans. The "wild boar catching team" composed of veterinarians and wildlife park staff in Badaling, Yanqing, Beijing, carries "anesthetic blow guns" and ropes. When they find a wild boar, they just need to aim and blow gently to anesthetize the wild boar and "catch it alive" and temporarily raise it in a wildlife park, which can be said to be "killing two birds with one stone." Some individuals can also be released into the wild and deep mountains when the time is right.

The problem of localized wildlife infestation is actually a global problem. Take wild boars for example. Football fields in the Netherlands are often pitted by a group of wild boars. During droughts, wild boars in Iran actually rushed into towns to find water. Wild boars in the United States rampaged through the Kennedy Space Center, directly threatening the takeoff and landing of space shuttles. There are more than 20,000 wild boars living in Berlin, Germany, so that scientists have to urgently develop a contraceptive pill and put it in the feeding trough in the forest park, or make it into a delicious "snack" and bury it underground for wild boars who like to dig up the soil to dig it out and eat it. Although this method is controversial, it is also a promising scientific exploration.

The complete solution to the conflict between humans and wild animals is not something that can be accomplished overnight. It must rely on scientific research and scientific management. We still have a long way to go in terms of how to balance the relationship between humans and animals. ■

Written by Li Xiangtao (Researcher at Beijing Museum of Natural History)

Editor/Liu Zhao New Media Editor/Lv Bingxin

Image source/Visual China

Produced by: Science Central Kitchen

Produced by: Beijing Science and Technology News | Beijing Science and Technology Media

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