I
do research on the macaques in Singapore. Over many months spent in the
nature reserves and wild places of Singapore, I've had a lot of
experiences to observe the wild boar as well. I love to watch them -
they're smart, the piglets are so adorable, and the connection between
the piglets and their mother is really touching.
In the time I've spent with the pigs, I've seen a pattern very similar to the pattern I've observed with the monkeys. Both the monkeys and the pigs are generally cautious of people. Conflict almost always arises when 1) people have food around the animals, 2) people get too close to the animals, or 3) people behave in unpredictable ways (screaming, running, trying to hit the animals with sticks). By doing all of these things, we're engineering our own problems and creating situations where people may be harmed by animals that would otherwise leave us alone.
I think the solution to the human-wildlife conflicts in Singapore is not mass culling, but mass education People need to learn how to behave around wild animals, and to be reminded that the animals are just that- wild. They're not dogs, you can't pet them, feed them, or sit next to them for photos.
In the time I've spent with the pigs, I've seen a pattern very similar to the pattern I've observed with the monkeys. Both the monkeys and the pigs are generally cautious of people. Conflict almost always arises when 1) people have food around the animals, 2) people get too close to the animals, or 3) people behave in unpredictable ways (screaming, running, trying to hit the animals with sticks). By doing all of these things, we're engineering our own problems and creating situations where people may be harmed by animals that would otherwise leave us alone.
I think the solution to the human-wildlife conflicts in Singapore is not mass culling, but mass education People need to learn how to behave around wild animals, and to be reminded that the animals are just that- wild. They're not dogs, you can't pet them, feed them, or sit next to them for photos.
