Culling Animals in Sri Lanka may not be the Answer

Recently the Agriculture Minister of Sri Lanka, Mahinda Amaraweera, granted farmers permission to kill monkeys, peacocks, grizzled giant squirrels, porcupines, wild boars, and toque macaques as they destroyed crops. In addition, the Minister of Industries, S B Dissanayake, also suggested culling monkeys and peacocks to prevent damage caused to coconut cultivation in the country.

Following these statements, the public took to social media to voice their concerns regarding the matter.

Based on these statements and the counter-arguments made, the Climate Fact Checks team also chose to investigate the topic to discover if culling animals would be a permanent solution to the challenges faced by the agricultural community in Sri Lanka. In addition, we examined if climate change has caused these animals to come out of their original habitats into agricultural lands.

What is Culling?

Culling is defined as reducing a selected wild animal population/s by controlled slaughtering. It is done in wildlife management to ensure the ecosystems are in balance. The culling of animals in conservation continues to be a controversial issue. While conservation scientists and protected area managers argue for its use as a management tool to control animal populations, some conservationists consider it morally wrong. Read more about culling here Archived.

Many countries open hunting season to control a selected population of species. For example, In the United States, hunting licenses and hunting seasons are a means by which the population of game animals is maintained. Each season, a hunter is allowed to kill a certain number of wild animals, determined by species and sex. If the population seems to have a surplus of females, hunters are allowed to take more females during that hunting season. If the population is below what is desired, hunters may not be permitted to hunt that particular species or only hunt a restricted number of males.

This is also common in Australia, parts of Africa, and Europe. However, several researchers have discovered this practice to be more dangerous than useful in the long run. Read more here Archived.

Conservation status and habitat of the animals on death sentence

The Animals permitted to be culled by the Minister are considered agricultural pests in Sri Lanka. These wild animals have been strongly habituated and found roaming in domestic areas in many parts of the country. It is important to take a look at what has happened to their original habitats/ food sources and the conservation status of these animals.

Monkeys

There are 3 species of monkey found in Sri Lanka – the toque macaque, the canopy-dwelling purple-faced leaf monkey/ langur (both endemic), and the gray langur.

The toque macaque, or the Rilawa, is an Endangered species endemic to Sri Lanka. Much of the original forested habitat of the toque macaque has been lost; hence the animal was forced to dwell in human-occupied areas. The diet of this monkey includes flowers, fruits, mushrooms, and prey items.

The purple-faced langur is also endemic to Sri Lanka and is found in different parts of the country. It is a very shy monkey compared to the other two species and prefers closed-canopy forests as its habitat. Due to rapid urbanization, the numbers have reduced greatly, making the species endangered.

The tufted grey langurs are abundant in dry zone forests and also within human dwellings. According to the National Red List of Sri Lanka, it is a Near Threatened species.

In addition to habitat destruction, these monkeys are also fed by people who have habituated them.

Peacocks

Peacocks are a protected species of significant cultural and religious importance to the country’s Buddhist and Hindu populations. Its original habitat was in the dry zone, but currently found in all parts of the country. It is a species that fall under the Least Concerned category according to the IUCN. Read more about how Climate Change has affected the distribution of Peacocks in Sri Lanka from our website.

Grizzled giant squirrels

These are highly arboreal squirrels found originally in the Central and Uva provinces of Sri Lanka but have not spread to other parts. It was the country’s national animal, but many farmers had requested to delist it from this criterion as it had become a pest. Read more here, Archived. Moreover, this specie is listed as Near Threatened. They are known to eat fruits, nuts, insects, bird eggs, and the bark of some trees. But people also feed them rice, bread, and other foods that are not in their original diet, training them to depend.

Porcupines

The Indian Crested Porcupine found in Sri Lanka is a Least concerned species in the red data book. Due to their flexible environmental tolerances, Indian crested porcupines occupy a broad range of habitats. They prefer rocky hillsides but are also common in tropical and temperate shrublands, grasslands, forests, plantations, and gardens. They also have a broad, mostly herbivorous diet.

Wild boars

It is one of the world’s most widespread animals, with a Least Concerned conservation status. The Sri Lankan Government decided to lift the ban imposed on transporting and selling wild boar and their meat in 2018.

Has Climate Change impacted Human Wildlife Conflict?

We can easily establish that for many of the conflicts people have with wildlife in Sri Lanka are caused by people themselves. Climate Change may be one such problem that culling cannot simply solve. Only a handful of research has been done on how climate change has impacted the increase in human-wildlife conflict. Looking at how humans have been displaced due to climate change, one can only assume that many wild animals too go through the same thing. Extreme weather conditions, habitat destruction, and change in global temperature coupled with unsustainable development can really push some of these endangered species off the brink of extinction. Read more here  Archived.

Although culling animals is a wildlife management strategy used, implementing it should be done following extensive environmental impact assessments. Every animal plays an important role in an ecosystem, and removing it can have a chain of positive or negative reactions on the environment. If the cause for removing the animal is mainly pest control, it is essential first to analyze how it became a pest. If the root cause of this can be addressed, where culling is not necessary, it should always be the first step in the management strategy. Many traditional farming techniques involve, methods to keep the animals away from crop lands by implementing simple strategies.

Evidently, as humans, it is important to look at how we have contributed to the problem as individuals and try to correct them first.