Analysis of Geospatial Factors Influencing Human-Elephant Conflict Using Remote Sensing and GIS Techniques: A Case Study in Anuradhapura District

Abstract

Human Elephant Conflict (HEC) can be considered as a major social and economic challenge in Sri Lanka, which causes significant damages to both the human lives and elephants. The study investigates the major environmental factors that has been identified to be affecting the HEC in Anuradhapura district in terms of their spatial patterns with the aid of Remote Sensing (RS) and Geographic Information Systems (GIS) techniques. It was identified that the variations in Land use/Land cover (LULC) classes over time, Population, expansion of agricultural lands, transportation network, temperature deviations, and the proximity to existing water bodies as key influencing factors for the HEC and were analysed accordingly with the use of geospatial programming. Datasets derived from satellite sensors and spatial modelling of those data were used for the identification of the high risk zones and the contribution of the assess factor to the HEC incidents. Results of the analysis revealed that the HEC incidents already occurred in this area is strongly associated with the expansion of agricultural areas that are near to the forest reserves, close proximity areas to water bodies, and fragmented habitats. Land Surface Temperature increment and development of infrastructure aids further to intensify the migration of elephants into human habitats. The research emphasizes the role of spatial technology in terms of detailed spatial mitigation planning for decision making process and how the RS and GIS based spatial modelling can support these long term conservation strategies.

Introduction

HEC is a growing socio-economic and environmental issue in Sri Lanka, especially in the dry zone where human settlements and agricultural lands overlap with elephant habitats. Increasing populations of both humans and elephants, along with land encroachment for farming and residential purposes, have intensified the conflict. Key drivers include crop raiding by elephants, land use changes, and agricultural expansion. HEC results in significant fatalities—approximately 90 humans and 300 elephants annually—making Sri Lanka one of the most affected countries in South Asia.

Global Context:
HEC is widespread across Asia and Africa. In India, Bangladesh, and China, HEC leads to hundreds of deaths annually and extensive crop damage. In Africa, countries like Kenya, Zimbabwe, and Namibia experience both human and elephant casualties due to conflicts near protected areas.

Historical Overview in Sri Lanka:
Sri Lanka is home to roughly 6,000 Asian elephants. Between 1950 and 2000, nearly 50% of elephant habitats were lost, especially in Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa, and Hambantota districts, leading to fragmented corridors and increased encounters with humans. Infrastructure developments like roads, expressways, and reservoirs have further blocked elephant movement, worsening HEC. Despite mitigation efforts like electric fencing, elephant relocation, and compensation schemes, the conflict remains severe due to weak enforcement and insufficient support.

Main Factors Influencing HEC:

1. Land Use/Land Cover Changes (LULC): Deforestation and conversion of forests into agricultural or settlement lands force elephants into human areas.

2. Agricultural Expansion: Crops like sugarcane, paddy, and banana attract elephants, increasing crop raids.

3. Population Growth: Rising human populations drive forest encroachment, further fragmenting elephant habitats.

4. Temperature and Climate: Heat and drought stress elephants, prompting movements toward human settlements in search of food and water.

5. Infrastructure (Roads and Railways): These barriers fragment habitats and alter elephant migration routes, causing collisions and conflicts.

6. Proximity to Water Sources: Elephants require large amounts of water, and villages near water bodies are hotspots for HEC, especially during dry seasons.

Use of GIS and Remote Sensing (RS):
GIS and RS are crucial for mapping HEC incidents, monitoring elephant habitats, analyzing the effects of land use, and identifying conflict hotspots. Sentinel-2 images are used for high-resolution land use mapping, while Landsat 8 thermal bands help calculate land surface temperature to study elephant movements. Other datasets include population, forest boundaries, railways, and recorded HEC fatalities.

Study Area:
Anuradhapura district in North Central Province is a major HEC hotspot, contributing to 42% of incidents in Sri Lanka. The district has extensive paddy fields and forests, which are increasingly encroached by humans. Around 60% of elephant damages are related to crops, often inadequately compensated.

Objective:
The study aims to identify and analyze the main factors contributing to HEC in Anuradhapura using RS and GIS techniques to inform better management strategies, mitigate conflicts, and protect both humans and elephants.

Conclusion

Elephants are identified to be a species of endangered animals in Asia because of the increasing incidents of HEC. As proven through the literature review increasing population of the world the needs of the people are increasing and hence they tend to grab what belongs to animal as well. They encroached their habitats for both human settlements and agricultural purposes. This leads to conflicts between humans and elephants, especially in Anuradhapura district. Mainly these elephants death events are more sided to the Horowpothana and palugaswawe. Most events of human deaths are reported from Madawachchiya and Kahatagasdigiliya side of the district. The significant changes in the land use types in Anuradhapura have resulted in different behaviors of elephants. Due to the habitat fragmentation due to the deforestation the elephant migration paths have fallen across human settlements areas, which lead to higher interaction rate between the 2 species. Reduction of the water resources inside the forest areas resulting in elephants encroaching the human lands in search of water and food. Mainly the increasing expansion of the agricultural areas leads many of these HEC events. Mainly all this is occurring due to the increasing population. It works like a chain, as population increases needs, needs lead people to conquer more lands for cultivation, that leads to HEC. Temperature can be have an effect on HEC on human deaths as most of the human death events falls within the high temperature region. Moreover as the temperature increases elephants migrate from their habitat in search of water, as Anuradhapura being a region in the dry zone of Sri Lanka, there can be droughts really quickly. When the roads and railway lines were considered the considerable number of events falls over these paths or closer to these paths. Hence the mitigation of HEC needs a careful understanding about these factors in detail which is easily obtained with the use of remote sensing and GIS. A time series analysis of these factors and their influence on HEC may aids in better decision making in terms of mitigating this bloody battle between the 2 species.

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Copyright

Copyright © 2026 I.A.B. Saubhagya, G.G.K.K. Meegastenna, A.N.D. Jayawardhana, S.R. Wanigasekara. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.