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Chapter 28 - Ecological and Social Dimensions of Sloth Bear Conservation in Sri Lanka

from Part IV - Conservation and ManagementConservation and Management

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 November 2020

Vincenzo Penteriani
Affiliation:
Spanish Council of Scientific Research (CSIC)
Mario Melletti
Affiliation:
WPSG (Wild Pig Specialist Group) IUCN SSC
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Summary

Balancing the needs of humans and wildlife in Sri Lanka presents enormous socioeconomic and conservation challenges. Sloth bears are legally protected, but attacks on humans generate intense fear, which increases the potential for human-caused bear mortality and local extirpation of bears. In this chapter, what is known about the ecology and human dimensions of the sloth bear in a country with a teeming human population and a history of poverty and civil conflict is explored. We also address whether changes in land use in the aftermath of the civil war may have impacted sloth bear distribution and discuss the conservation outlook for bears.

Type
Chapter
Information
Bears of the World
Ecology, Conservation and Management
, pp. 379 - 386
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2020

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