Escalating human–wildlife conflict in the Wolong Nature Reserve, China: A dynamic and paradoxical process

Human–wildlife conflict (HWC) has become a conservation focus for both protected area management and local communities in many parts of the world. The incidence and mediation of HWCs are rooted in coupled environmental and socioeconomic contexts. A systematic analysis of HWCs was undertaken in 2016 in the Wolong Nature Reserve located in Sichuan Province, southwestern China. Semi‐structured interviews were conducted with 201 local households to understand the occurrence of wildlife damage, the wildlife species involved, the typical losses incurred, and the mitigation measures employed. The results revealed that local HWC has increased rapidly in recent years due to effective biodiversity conservation and ecological restoration policies. Despite the widespread occurrence of HWCs, with nearly all respondents stating that they had suffered a financial loss, appropriate compensation schemes are lacking. Local respondents' expected compensation amount and style were investigated, and it was concluded that integrated compensation and community development plans are needed to mediate and resolve HWC. In particular, greater attention should be given to reduce local households' dependence on agriculture and transform local livelihood strategies to alternative economic activities not related to farming, such as ecotourism development and migrating employment. Human–wildlife conflict (HWC) in the Wolong Nature Reserve in China has increased rapidly in recent years due to effective biodiversity conservation and ecological restoration policies. Local natural resource managers and national‐level policies have focused on endangered wildlife and the damage these species incur, but have ignored the sizable increases in common wildlife and the subsequent effects on the local community. Regulations outlining compensation based on actual damages incurred rather than the species of wildlife causing the damage should be promptly established in the Wolong Nature Reserve and more broadly throughout China.