Research Article: Shivakumar, S., Gonzalez, M., Athreya, V., & Karanth, K. K. (2025). Stories of coexistence: A narrative inquiry of leopard attacks on people. People and Nature, 00, 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1002/pan3.70120
Blog Author: Shweta Shivakumar
Key Highlights:
- The study conducted in Himachal Pradesh analysed 89 stories of leopard attacks shared by victims, families, and witnesses.
- It found that most attacks happened in the late evening or night when people were returning home from fields or bringing back their livestock.
- Villagers often used sticks, stones, sickles, or even lunchboxes to fight back, which reduced the severity of injuries.
- It revealed that coexistence has shifted from tolerance of leopards to a cycle of escalating clashes and retaliation.
- Awareness campaigns, quicker compensation, medical support, and protective tools are ways to build safer coexistence.
Stories, powerful mediums that shape how we see the world, influence behaviour, and provide models for how to act in moments of crisis. In conservation, stories have the potential to be powerful tools for understanding human–wildlife conflict (HWC) through the voices of those directly affected.
India’s rich storytelling traditions, from the Ramayana to local deities like Waghoba, the wild cat god, show how animals are woven into culture. But alongside myths are lived stories: villagers describing what happens when leopards attack. These narratives, raw and immediate, offer insights that are often overlooked. In Himachal Pradesh, we recorded 89 accounts from people affected by leopard attacks, victims, family members, and witnesses. Each story followed a structure: setting, sudden attack, human reaction, and resolution. Leopards appeared as the antagonist; the human became the protagonist. One storyteller recalls:
‘I didn’t even realise in the beginning what was behind me, a human or an animal. When I felt his (leopard) claws, I realised it was an animal.’
We recorded varied reactions from the stories – some people fought back, chasing leopards, using guard dogs, or striking with sickles. Others froze, screamed, or fainted, with passive responses more common in women’s accounts. Protective acts, such as shielding children, also featured. In one striking case, a man fought off a leopard with his lunchbox. Resolution to the conflict ranged from immediate retaliation against the leopard to long-term medical treatment. Yet surprisingly few emphasised the urgency of care, despite the risks of rabies and tetanus. Many stories mentioned the Forest Department, which villagers turned to for compensation and leopard trapping.
These stories highlighted knowledge often ignored by formal government procedures and mainstream research. Villagers already use tools and techniques, like stones, dogs, and sickles, to fend off leopards. Recognising these practices can guide site-specific interventions. Human–wildlife conflict has no single solution. Culture and context shape responses, and storytelling captures these nuances. By listening to real experiences of loss, bravery, and resilience, conservation can design interventions that resonate locally. In the end, stories are not just memories of survival but guides for living with leopards in shared landscapes.
To access the original article, click here!
Keywords: Leopard attacks, stories, Himachal Pradesh, Human-wildlife conflict
