Human-Elephant Conflict Mitigation
The conversion of forest into the plantation, mining, and settlement areas has narrowed the livelihood space of wildlife. This condition will profoundly affect big mammals like Sumatran Elephant (Elephas maximus sumatranus), Sumatran Tiger (Panthera tigris sumatrae), Sumatran Orangutan (Pongo abelii), and Malayan Tapir (Tapirus indicus). The massive disappearance of the ranging region causes the high likelihood of interaction with human beings and often resulted in conflict. Crops and poultries are ideal preys because of the disappearance of natural food source. Human-wildlife conflict can induce disadvantages between both parties materialistically together with potentially victimised them.
Sumatran elephant needs “green” food source which targets smallholder agriculture. Human-Elephant Conflicts that are continuously happening trigger the biggest mammals on the earth are seen as no other than a pest. In order to protect their gardens, half of the local populations have set up snares, poisons, as well as alternating current electric fence to ward off the elephants. The deaths of elephants due to conflict becomes exponential. Indonesian Elephant Conservation Forum (FKGI) recorded during the period of 2012-2016 there are 152 deaths of individual elephant – mainly caused by the gardening conflict.
Reducing the catastrophic risk (mitigating) the human and wildlife conflicts, a thorough strategy is needed on landscape level as well as active participation from multi-stakeholders. The
Spatial-oriented planning revision by regional regulations, corridor building, habitat enrichment, integrated mitigation team formation, socialisation, technological usefulness, and community development at conflict prone-areas are some activities done to handle the human and wildlife conflict.
Wildlife Crime Investigation
Poaching and illegal trafficking of wildlife until now have been becoming a very serious threat since it plummets the wildlife population drastically. With increasingly habitat encroachment thus narrow the home range of the wildlife. Poachers usually utilize fire gun either assembly or organic, various traps, and poisons. The high market demands, as well as economical values inadvertently, bring the high rate of wildlife poaching. The network of wildlife trading has been intertwined very orderly. The successfully revealed wildlife trafficking case shows that the origins of the actors are almost from all social strata and occupational background – from farmers to law enforcement personnel and civil officers. The wildlife was killed fulfilling different aims such as for display, medicine, heresy goods, cigarette pipes, sharp weaponry handsets, and others. The newborn or juvenile animals were sold alive and have undeniably high merchantability. The traded scalability is not only national-wise but on an international scale.
Habitat Enrichment
Protection of wildlife sustainability starts with protecting the good remaining existing habitat which is either located inside conservation areas or outside conservation areas. Both habitat allocation and enrichment are very significant to be done by multi stakeholders that in turns doing their business especially inside Sumatran Elephant habitat. Conservation areas allocation and river-buffer zonings soon will be basic responsibility of concession permit holders.
Habitat enrichments can be done by planting natural feeding plants at certain points along the protected wildlife regions especially areas with high occurrences of Sumatran Elephant. The species is chosen not just according to elephant’s preferences but should be native to this area and gives positive impacts to the environment, such as Musa balbisiana, bamboo trees, and Pennisetum purpureum.
