Human-Elephant Conflict Around Pu Mat National Park, Vietnam.

The elephants living in Pu Mat National Park and Anh Son Watershed Forest, often move out to adjacent areas and cause severe human-elephant conflict (HEC). The main reasons for the HEC are, reduction and degradation of natural forest, human disturbance of elephant habitat, not taking elephants into account in land-use planning and poor HEC management. Local communities are very poor and have little experience in HEC prevention. HEC significantly impacts their livelihoods, threatens their lives and induces significant psychological stress, resulting in decreased support for elephant conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]