D. Rajkumar of the Wildlife Conservation Foundation expressed concern over tourists’ noisy and raucous behaviour on the campus, even chattering non-stop during the safari. “For most tourists visiting Bandipur, the safari is akin to entertainment, and some of them lack awareness of wildlife behaviour. When they don’t sight animals, many have complained and even sought a refund of the safari fee,” he said.
There is also a tendency among people to feed animals. This is dangerous as unsuspecting animals could fall prey to potential poachers, who can lure them with bait. Besides, such feeding may increase their dependency on humans, and they may enter the landscape, escalating man-animal conflict. Youngsters blaring horns and zipping at high speed on the highway cutting through the forests, is another problem. “The incident of a leopard being run over by a vehicle at Wayanad on Saturday night is the latest of such accidents that have taken place,” Mr. Rajkumar said.
