Best Practice Guidelines for Mitigating Human - Great Ape Conflict

The IUCN/SSC Primate Specialist Group has published a new set of guidelines on the prevention and mitigation of conflict between humans and great apes. Presented as part of the Best Practice series for great ape conservation, this report is designed to help researchers and wildlife managers understand the causes of human - great ape conflict, and find equitable ways to resolve it.

Written by Drs. Kimberley Hockings and Tatyana Humle, these guidelines focus on an increasingly troublesome issue: the intensifying interactions between humans and great apes, which often flare into conflicts over immediate resources such as food and water. All too often, the ultimate cause of these conflicts is the inexorable expanse of human settlements into the great apes’ remaining forest habitat. With the majority of great apes surviving outside of parks and other protected areas, careful strategies are necessary to avoid conflicts whenever possible, or else to minimize their impact to all involved.

This newest publication in the Best Practice series offers guidelines for dealing with two particular aspects of human - great ape interaction – their conflicts over resources, and attacks by great apes on humans. These guidelines are meant to give researchers and wildlife managers a framework in which to understand human - great ape conflict, as well as providing a range of options and potential countermeasures to employ. These guidelines are intended not as a simple list of problems and solutions, but as an integrated conceptual structure which has been designed to help wildlife managers address the needs of both great apes and humans wherever they interact.

The full PDF of this report is available below:

Best Practice Guidelines for the Prevention and Mitigation of Conflict Between Humans and Great Apes

Lignes directrices pour de meilleures pratiques en matière de prévention et d´atténuation des conflits entre humains et grands singes

Panduan Pencegahan dan Mitigasi Konflik antara Manusia dan Kera Besar

The Erratum Table from the PDF report is available below:

Erratum, Best Practice Guidelines for the Prevention and Mitigation of Conflict Between Humans and Great Apes

Erratum, Lignesdirectrices pour de meilleures pratiques en matière de prévention et d´atténuation des conflits entre humains et grands singes

Suggested citation: Hockings, K. and Humle, T. 2009. Best Practice Guidelines for the Prevention and Mitigation of Conflict Between Humans and Great Apes. IUCN/SSC Primate Specialist Group, Gland, Switzerland.

Additional guidelines will be posted on the Best Practices page as they become available.

The Primate Specialist Group gratefully acknowledges the financial support of the Arcus Foundation in the publication of this report.