An Agent-Based Model of Elephant Crop Raid Dynamics in the Periyar-Agasthyamalai Complex, India

TL;DR

The paper addresses human-wildlife conflict by developing a prototype agent-based model (ABM) to simulate interactions between humans and solitary bull Asian elephants in the Periyar-Agasthyamalai complex, Kerala, India. Using literature, expert input, and field surveys, the ABM incorporates behaviors such as crop habituation, thermoregulation, and aggression, and includes a four-step calibration process to adapt relocation data from Indonesian elephants to the local domain. Simulations explore multiple food-availability scenarios to examine space use, conflict patterns, and environmental impact. Results indicate that wet months elevate conflict and that thermoregulatory needs and starvation intensify crop-raiding behavior, with crop habituation further amplifying these effects. As a prototype, the model provides a foundation for developing decision-support tools in wildlife management and will be extended with additional layers of complexity; the work is accessible at the provided GitHub repository.

Abstract

Human-wildlife conflict challenges conservation worldwide, which requires innovative management solutions. We developed a prototype Agent-Based Model (ABM) to simulate interactions between humans and solitary bull Asian elephants in the Periyar-Agasthyamalai complex of the Western Ghats in Kerala, India. The main challenges were the complex behavior of elephants and insufficient movement data from the region. Using literature, expert insights, and field surveys, we created a prototype behavior model that incorporates crop habituation, thermoregulation, and aggression. We designed a four-step calibration method to adapt relocation data from radio-tagged elephants in Indonesia to model elephant movements in the model domain. The ABM's structure, including the assumptions, submodels, and data usage are detailed following the Overview, Design concepts, Details protocol. The ABM simulates various food availability scenarios to study elephant behavior and environmental impact on space use and conflict patterns. The results indicate that the wet months increase conflict and thermoregulation significantly influences elephant movements and crop raiding. Starvation and crop habituation intensify these patterns. This prototype ABM is an initial model that offers information on the development of a decision support system in wildlife management and will be further enhanced with layers of complexity and subtlety across various dimensions. Access the ABM at https://github.com/quest-lab-iisc/abm-elephant-project.