Humans sharing space with Crocodylus porosus in Bhitarkanika Wildlife Sanctuary: conflicts and options

摘要

The saltwater crocodile (SWC), Crocodylus porosus is perhaps the largest living reptile in the world. C. porosus has the widest range of any extant crocodilian. This is due to its ability to traverse long distances in the open sea which helped this species to inhabit almost the whole of tropical coastal Asia, besides many inlands, including India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea and Australia. SWCs are extinct from Seychelles and Mauritius. In India, they are currently restricted to Bhitarkanika, Sunderbans and the Andaman Islands. Considering the declining numbers of this species, the Government of India enforced a protective legislation through the Indian Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, to conserve them along with two other crocodilians, the gharial (Gavialis gangeticus) and mugger crocodile (Crocodylus palustris). Under the Government of India/FAO/UNDP Crocodile Breeding and Management Project, coordinated by FAO expert H. R. Bustard, captive breeding of SWCs was initiated by the Forest Department of Orissa in 1975 at Dangmal, the Bhitarkanika Wildlife Sanctuary (BWLS).