Investigating the use of olfactory cues to re-direct African savannah elephant pathways. A potential conflict mitigation tool.

Abstract

Human-elephant conflict resulting from, for example crop raiding behaviour, poses a significant threat to the conservation of African savannah elephants (Loxodonta africana). These conflicts can lead to fatalities in both humans and elephants. When a crop field is located in the proximity of an elephant pathway, the chances of it being raided are higher. To mitigate these problems, this study investigated the potential of using olfactory cues in elephant pathway soil to re-direct elephant pathways away from crops and human settlements. In an attempt to manipulate elephant movement, a treatment of soil with olfactory cues was placed on the side that was initially less used in pathway branching events, aiming at stimulating the usage of these less used sides. The 1500 elephant sightings, captured by camera traps on pathways towards the Boteti River in the Makgadikgadi Pans National Park, gave data for elephant pathway usage in the study. There was considerable variation in pathway usage by individual elephants and groups, as well as in usage during the day and night. A logistic regression in time series analyses revealed no significant immediate or sustained effect of the treatments on pathway usage. This could be due to the pre-existing olfactory cues on established pathways overshadowing the treatments, or that elephants have a better understanding of the park than previously assumed. Additionally, the elephants may have smelled the Boteti River water nearby, reducing their attention to the pathway treatments. Furthermore, the study found that elephants have an even greater preference for the initially more used pathways during darkness. This suggests that the elephants have a stronger dependence on olfactory cues during the night. Overall, this study is the first step in creating a new method to mitigate human elephant conflict, and it highlights the need to better understand the factors influencing elephants’ movement patterns.