As crop-raiding animals reach an all-time high, food-crisis hit Lanka looks for solutions

(Mongabay) Crop damage by wild animals in Sri Lanka during the first half of 2022 totaled around 144,989 metric tons of 28 types of crops, including paddy and vegetables, and 93 million coconuts resulting in an overall loss of 30,215 million Sri Lankan rupees ($ 87.5 million), according to a new estimate.

The toque macaque tops the list of crop raiders followed by wild boar, elephant, peafowl, giant squirrel and porcupine with five types of crops most heavily damaged: coconuts, paddy, vegetables, corn and bananas.

A high-level committee consisting of experts in agriculture, veterinary science, zoology, natural sciences and conservation ecology conclude that population control of some of these animals may have to be seriously considered.

Experts also recommend a data-driven, science-based approach to solve the problem before it escalates further, as different regions may experience different facets of the problem, requiring diverse solutions.

Arjuna Jinadasa owns a plot of land full of coconut trees in Kurunegala, where he enjoys a good produce of about 3,000 coconuts a month. With Sri Lanka’s traditional cuisine heavily reliant on coconut milk, it’s a crop with high demand. Jinadasa has made healthy profits from his plantation until recently — when daily aerial attacks by monkeys started to impact the harvest.

“These monkeys destroy at least 200 young coconuts daily, and now my monthly yield is reduced to about 250 coconuts,” says Jinadasa. The farmer tried many non-lethal methods to keep the raiding monkeys away, but the success was short-lived, as the primates got used to them.

Sri Lanka has three species of monkeys, but the endemic toque macaque (Macaca sinica) is also the most problematic. Coconut plantations in many areas are also often subjected to aerial attacks by grizzled giant squirrels (Ratufa macroura), as they eat young coconuts. Minister of Agriculture, Mahinda Amaraweera, says nearly 100 million coconuts are destroyed by monkeys and giant squirrels each year, causing a loss of about 6,638 million Sri Lankan rupees ($19.3 million).

Amaraweera makes this comment based on a preliminary estimate of crop damage caused by wild animals compiled by the Hector Kobbekaduwa Agrarian Research and Training Institute. The report is based on data gathered by the Agrarian Development Department, and it lists coconut as the worst-affected crop, followed by paddy, vegetables, corn and bananas. The toque macaque tops the list of crop raiders, followed by wild boar (Sus scrofa), Asian elephant (Elephas maximus), Indian peafowl (Pavo cristatus), giant squirrel (Ratufa macroura) and Indian porcupine (Hystrix indica).

Toque macaques and giant squirrels cause the worst damage to coconuts, while elephants, wild boars and peafowl mainly target paddy (rice), Sri Lanka’s staple food. Porcupines tend to damage young coconut plants and vegetables.

The report estimates the financial loss caused by crop damage due to wild animals in the first half of 2022 as a massive 30,215 million Sri Lankan rupees ($87.5 million). “Sri Lanka is facing a severe economic crisis, and the recorded crop devastation intensifies the food crisis we already face here. The government is looking for ways to reduce the population of identified wild animals considered agricultural pests,” Amaraweera tells Mongabay.

In this backdrop, there have been many queries about the government being compelled to consider culling as a solution. “We haven’t decided yet, but we need to urgently find ways to control these pests,” Amaraweera says.

The intensification of human-elephant conflict in Sri Lanka is also linked to crop raiding. Elephants cause substantial crop damage, especially to paddy and bananas; but even though the problem continues to escalate, the animal’s status as an endangered species makes it difficult to find easy solutions and calls for urgent and alternative management practices, Amaraweera says.