Human-wild animal clashes on the rise in China’s Giant Panda National Park

Friction between humans and wildlife at China's newly established Giant Panda National Park has worsened over the past decade, according to a recent study. The park, covering 22,000 square kilometers and home to 1,300 giant pandas, 70% of the global population, saw an increase in property damage and livestock attacks as conservation efforts expanded. This issue has become the most pressing challenge for park administrators.

The park, which spans Sichuan, Shaanxi, and Gansu provinces, is now home to over 8,000 additional species, including red pandas, deer, migratory birds, golden snub-nosed monkeys, snow leopards, and takins. Researchers from Beijing Forestry University and the Shaanxi Academy of Governance found that human-wildlife conflicts, defined as incidents involving attacks on humans, property damage, and impacts on wildlife, had not only intensified but also diversified.

The study, published in the peer-reviewed Chinese-language journal Acta Ecologica Sinica, found that while resource-use conflicts – such as firewood collection, logging, agriculture, and grazing – had gradually decreased, concerns about high-level conflicts, including industrial development restrictions, rose sharply. These conflicts peaked in 2021 before declining back to pre-park levels. Farmers' ecotourism revenue, on the other hand, increased more than tenfold.

The researchers suggest that while the benefits of wildlife protection are generally shared, the costs are primarily borne by farmers. They call for a shift from compensating farmers for property damage – a slow process – to preventive measures like electronic fences, intelligent infrared monitoring, and early warning systems.