Rural and urban views on elephants 615
alert authorities to poaching activities for fear of retaliation (Kyaw Ko Ko, 2018). Elephants and other wildlife are high- value natural resources (Douglas & Alie, 2014), and the number of elephants poached appears to be increasing annually (Sampson et al., 2018). Local communities and the Myanmar governmentmay need to protect citizens as popu- lations of high-value species decline, as the activities of crim- inal organizations can result in social unrest and violence.
Implications for conservation
Understanding the attitudes and belief systems underlying citizens’ support for elephant conservation can help guide the creation of effective conservation strategies that inte- grate traditional values and modern science. Our interview survey indicates that the people of Myanmar recognize the importance of mitigating the expansion of human activities into wild areas, to protect elephants. This suggests they are probably willing to support conservation initiatives to pro- tect elephant habitat. Similarly, highlighting the role of ele- phants in Myanmar’s culture and their religious importance can encourage rural communities to adopt behaviours that benefit elephants. Communities do not appear to be actively engaging
in conservation activities to reduce poaching, despite their stated support for elephant protection and willingness to comply with relevant laws. Conversations with community leaders and local wildlife authorities suggest that actions such as assisting poachers may be financially motivated and driven by low levels of income and the high rewards paid by poachers. Given the deeply religious nature of many people in Myanmar and the Buddhist tenet that pro- hibits the killing of any living creature, developing and implementing programmes in collaboration with religious authorities to stigmatize working with poachers may help to counteract any financial incentives for doing so. Our findings suggest that the government and associated
elephant conservation agencies need to expand their mitiga- tion efforts to include addressing the consequences of poach- ing and the illegal wildlife trade felt by human populations in Myanmar (e.g. elevated levels of fear and perceived po- tential for violence). Growing demand for elephant products (Sampson et al., 2018)may lead to further declines in the ele- phant population and greater efforts from poachers to locate them, potentially increasing perceived violence against communities. Other studies of declines of high-value wildlife have shown that, as more effort is needed to locate the ani- mals, there can be an increase in organized crime and the forced conscription of children and adults into the illegal wildlife trade (WWF/Dalberg, 2012; Brashares et al., 2014). Future studies should assess the part that local commu-
nities play in poaching (e.g. not reporting poachers, assisting them to locate elephants and transfer poached products) and their motivation for doing so. This information would
help conservationorganizationsdevelop strategies toovercome any barriers to comply with anti-poaching laws. Additional studies that examine the structure of poaching operations, which is challenging given their illicit nature, could assist law enforcement in identifying and disrupting poaching activities. In addition, identifying vulnerable communities and commu- nity members may facilitate the development of educational outreach and intervention programmes, to prevent poachers fromengagingtheminactivitiesthatarebothillicitanddestruc- tive to their own natural resources and livelihood security.
Acknowledgements We thank the community members in Myanmar for their participation; U Khin Maung Gyi, U Myint Aung, Daw Khine Khine Swe and Aung Nyein Chan for their input and guid- ance in conducting the research; Zin Hline Htun, NyiWin KyawKyaw, Dr. Idd Idd Shwe Zin, Chan Nyein Aung, Zayar Soe, Ne Eindray Khin, Padang Aung, Bo Kyaw Htwe, La Pyae Wun, Kuang Thet Kyaw Zawe, Yan Lin Tun, Margaret Nyein Nyein Myint and Shane Thiha Soe for their assistance with fieldwork; and Christy Williams, Nicholas Cox and the staff of WWF-Myanmar for their support. Permission for this study was granted by the Myanmar Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation. This study was funded by the U.S. Fish& Wildlife Service Asian Elephant Conservation Fund (#ASE1648).
Author contributions Study design: CS, JAG; fieldwork: CS, PS; data analysis: CS, JAG, SLR, PL; writing: CS, JAG, SLR, DT; revision: all authors.
Conflicts of interest None.
Ethical standards This research abided by the Oryx guidelines on ethical standards and was conducted with permission under the Memorandum of Understanding between the Myanmar Government and the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute. The question- naire and study design were approved by the institutional review boards at Clemson University and the Smithsonian Institution (IRB Protocols #2014-187 and #HS17014, respectively), and we obtained prior, informed consent from the interviewees.
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Oryx, 2022, 56(4), 609–616 © The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Fauna & Flora International doi:10.1017/S0030605321000156
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