Abstract
The Hponkanrazi Wildlife Sanctuary, North Myanmar and three contiguous protected areas, comprise some of the largest expanses of natural forest remaining in the region. Demand for wildlife products has resulted in unsustainable exploitation of commercially valuable species resulting in local extirpation of vulnerable species. Camera trap, track and sign, and questionnaire-based surveys were used to examine (a) wildlife species targeted by hunters, (b) the importance of wild meat for household consumption, and (c) the significance of hunting as a livelihood activity for resident villages. Certain commercially valuable species highly preferred by hunters were either completely absent from hunt records (tiger, musk deer and otter) or infrequently obtained during actual hunts (bear, pangolin). Species obtained by hunters were commonly occurring species such as muntjacs with low commercial value and not highly preferred by hunters. Fifty eight percent of respondents (n = 84) indicated trade, 27% listed subsistence use and 14% listed human-wildlife conflict as the main reason for hunting (n = 84). Average amount of wild meat consumed per month is not significantly higher during the hunting season compared to the planting season (paired t-test, P > 0.05). Throughout the year, the average amount of fish consumed per month was higher than livestock or wild meat (Friedman test, P < 0.0001). Hunting is driven largely by trade and wild meat, while not a critical source of food for a large number of families could potentially be an important, indirect source of access to food for hunting families. Findings and trends from this study are potentially useful in helping design effective conservation strategies to address globally prevalent problems of declining wildlife populations and dependent human communities. The study provides recommendations to reduce illegal hunting and protect vulnerable species by strengthening park management through enforcement, increasing the opportunity costs of poaching, establishing no-take zones and research to determine the economic significance of hunting for livelihoods.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Agrawal A, Gibson CC (1999) Enchantment and disenchantment: the role of community in natural resource conservation. World Development 27:629–649
Albrechtsen L, Macdonald DW, Johnson PJ, Castelo R, Fa JE (2005) Faunal loss from bushmeat hunting: empirical evidence and policy implications in Bioko Island. Environmental Science and Policy 10:654–667
Amato G, Egan MG, Rabinowitz A (1999) A new species of muntjac, Muntiacus putaoensis (Artiodactyla: Cervidae) from North Myanmar. Animal Conservation 2:1–8
Anon (2005) Going, going, gone. The illegal trade in wildlife in East and Southeast Asia. The World Bank, Washington, DC 23 pp
Aung M (2007) Policy and practice in Myanmar’s protected area system. Journal of Environmental Management 84:188–203
Barrett CB, Arcese P (1998) Wildlife harvest in integrated conservation and development projects: linking harvest to household demand, agricultural production, and environmental shocks in the Serengeti. Land Economics 74:449–465
Barrett CB, Brandon K, Gibson C, Gjertsen H (2001a) Conserving tropical biodiversity amid weak institutions. Bio-Science 51:497–502
Barrett CB, Reardon T, Webb P (2001b) Non-farm income diversification and household livelihood strategies in rural Africa: concepts, dynamics, and policy implications. Food Policy 26:315–331
Bennett EL, Nyaoi AJ, Sompud J (2000) Saving Borneo’s bacon: the sustainability of hunting in Sarawak and Sabah. In: Robinson JG, Bennett EL (eds) Sustainability of hunting in tropical forests. Columbia University Press, New York, pp 305–324
Bennett EL (2002) Is there a link between wild meat and food security? Conservation Biology 16:590–592
Bennett EL, Milner-Gulland EJ, Bakarr M, Eves HE, Robinson JG, Wilkie D (2002) Hunting the world’s wildlife to extinction. Oryx 36:328–329
Brashares JS, Arcese P, Sam MK, Coppolillo PB, Sinclair ARE, Balmford A (2004) Bushmeat hunting, wildlife declines, and fish supply in west Africa. Science 306:1180–1183
Coomes OT, Barhamb BL, Takasakic Y (2004) Targeting conservation–development initiatives in tropical forests: insights from analyses of rain forest use and economic reliance among Amazonian peasants. Ecological Economics 51:47–64
Corlett RT (2007) The impact of hunting on the mammalian fauna of tropical Asian forests. Biotropica 39:292–303
Damania R, Stringer R, Karanth U, Stith B (2003) The economics of protecting tiger populations: linking household behaviour to poaching and prey depletion. Land Economics 79:198–216
Datta A, Anand MO, Naniwadekar R (2008) Empty forests: Large carnivore and prey abundance in Namdapha National Park, north-east India. Biological Conservation 141:1429–1435
De Merode E, Homewood K, Cowlishaw G (2004) The value of bushmeat and other wild foods to rural households living in extreme poverty in Democratic Republic of Congo. Biological Conservation 118:573–581
Hofer H, Campbell KL, East ML, Huish SA (2000) Modeling the spatial distribution of the economic costs and benefits of illegal game meat hunting in the Serengeti. Natural Resource Modeling 13:151–177
Jennelle CS, Runge MC, Mackenzie DI (2002) The use of photographic rates to estimate densities of tigers and other cryptic mammals: a comment on misleading conclusions. Animal Conservation 5:119–120
Jerozolimski A, Peres CA (2003) Bringing home the biggest bacon: a cross-site analysis of the structure of hunter-kill profiles in Neotropical forests. Biological Conservation 111:415–425
Kaul R, Hilaludin Jandrotia JS, McGowan PJK (2004) Hunting of large mammals and pheasants in the Western Indian Himalaya. Oryx 38:1–6
Kühl A, Balinova N, Bykova E, Arylov YN, Esipov A, Lushchekina AA, Milner-Gulland EJ (2009) The role of saiga poaching in rural communities: Linkages between attitudes, socio-economic circumstances and behaviour. Biological Conservation 142:1442–1449
Lee RJ (2000) Impact of subsistence hunting in North Sulawesi, Indonesia, and conservation options. In: Robinson JG, Bennett EL (eds) Sustainability of hunting in tropical forests. Columbia University Press, New York, pp 455–472
Leimgruber P, Kelly DS, Steininger MK, Brunner J, Muller T, Songer M (2005) Forest cover change patterns in Myanmar (Burma) 1990–2000. Environmental Conservation 32:356–364
Loibooki M, Hofer H, Campbell KLI, East ML (2002) Bushmeat hunting by communities adjacent to the Serengeti National Park, Tanzania: the importance of livestock ownership and alternative sources of protein and income. Environmental Conservation 29:391–398
Lynam AJ, Khaing ST, Zaw KM (2006) Developing a National Tiger Action Plan for the Union of Myanmar. Environmental Management 37:30–39
Mcelwee PD (2008) Forest Environmental income in Vietnam: household socioeconomic factors influencing forest use. Environmental Conservation 35:147–159
Milner-Gulland EJ, Bennett EL, the SCB 2002 Annual Meeting Wild Meat Group (2003) Wild meat: the bigger picture. Trends in Ecology and Evolution 18:351–357
Milton O, Estes RD (1963) Myanmar Wildlife Survey: 1959–1960. Special publication No. 15. A report prepared for the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources and the American Committee for International Wildlife Protection, New York
Naranjo EJ, Bodmer RE (2007) Source–sink systems and conservation of hunted ungulates in the Lacandon Forest, Mexico. Biological Conservation 138:412–420
Neilsen MR (2006) Importance, cause and effect of bushmeat hunting in the Udzungwa Mountains, Tanzania: Implications for community based wildlife management. Biological Conservation 28:509–516
Nichols JD, Karanth U (2002) Statistical concepts: indices of relative abundance. In: Karanth KU, Nichols JD (eds) Monitoring tigers and their prey. A Manual for researchers, managers and conservationists in Tropical Asia. Centre for Wildlife Studies, Bangalore, India, pp 61–69
Nooren H, Claridge G (2001) Wildlife trade in Laos: the end of the game. Netherlands Committee for IUCN, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 304 pp
O’Brien T, Kinnaird M, Wibisono H (2003) Crouching tigers, hidden prey: Sumatran tiger and prey populations in a tropical forest landscape. Animal Conservation 6:131–139
Ohl-Schacherer J, Shepard JG Jr, Kaplan H, Peres CA, Levi T, Yu DW (2007) The sustainability of subsistence hunting by Matsigenka Native Communities in Manu National Park, Peru. Conservation Biology 21:1174–1185
Rabinowitz A, Amato G, Khaing ST (1998) The discovery of the black muntjac, Muntiacus crinifrons, in northern Myanmar. Mammalia 62:105–108
Rao M, Rabinowitz A, Khaing ST (2002) Status review of the protected area system in Myanmar, with recommendations for conservation planning. Conservation Biology 16:360–368
Rao M, Myint T, Zaw T, Htun S (2005) Hunting patterns in tropical forests adjoining the Hkakaborazi National Park, North Myanmar. Oryx 39:292–300
Renner SC, Rappole JH, Leimgrüber P, Kelly DS, Shwe NM, Aung T, Aung M (2007) Land cover in the Northern Forest Complex of Myanmar: new insights for conservation. Oryx 41:27–37
Shepherd CR (2001) Observations on Wildlife Trade at Golden Rock, Myanmar. TRAFFIC Bulletin 19:7–10
Shepherd CR, Nijman V (2007) An assessment of wildlife trade at Mong La market on the Myanmar–China border. TRAFFIC Bull 21:85–88
State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC) (1994) The protection of wildlife and protected areas law (Law No. 6/94). 8th June 1994. Yangon, Myanmar
Zaw T, Htun S, Po SHT, Maung M, Lynam AJ, Latt KT, Duckworth JW (2008) Status and distribution of small carnivores in Myanmar. Small Carnivore Conservation 38:2–28
Tordoff AW, Eames JC, Eberhardt K, Baltzer MC, Davidson P, Leimgruber P, Uga U, Than A (2005) Myanmar: investment opportunities in biodiversity conservation. Birdlife International, Yangon, Myanmar
Acknowledgments
We are grateful for the financial assistance provided by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, British Embassy, Yangon and for the permissions granted and support provided by the Nature and Wildlife Conservation Division, Ministry of Forestry, Government of Myanmar. We are indebted to the local people who shared their knowledge with us and local field assistants who spent many long and arduous days in challenging field conditions. We would like to especially thank U Kyaw Thinn Latt for his assistance in creating Fig. 1 and to the administrative staff of the WCS Myanmar Program for logistical assistance. The Wildlife Conservation Society, New York provided additional financial assistance for this project. We would like to thank three anonymous reviewers for their suggestions to improve the manuscript.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Rao, M., Htun, S., Zaw, T. et al. Hunting, Livelihoods and Declining Wildlife in the Hponkanrazi Wildlife Sanctuary, North Myanmar. Environmental Management 46, 143–153 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-010-9519-x
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-010-9519-x