Diversity and management of wild mammals in tea gardens in the rainforest regions of the Western Ghats, India: A case study from a tea estate in the Anaimalai Hills

In many places in the Western Ghats hill ranges of southern India, rainforest has been clear-felled in order to grow tea plantations. Such plantations now exist as islands of agriculture surrounded by forest tracts, most of which are protected as wildlife sanctuaries. We report a case study from one such tea garden. We observed a diversity of wild mammals, both herbivores and carnivores, using open grass patches, swamps and vegetation along streams in the tea garden. Large mammals were observed to forage in such areas and return to the adjoining forests. Small mammals were either resident or used stream vegetation as a corridor to move from one side of the forest to the opposite side. Dhole (Cuon alpinus) often preyed on sambar (Cervus unicolor) and even denned twice in the estate. We also observed a minimal human-animal conflict in the area. Problems such as stealing of meat from sambar kills made by dhole, could be overcome by awareness. We propose that such areas can be effectively managed such that it could facilitate movement of wild mammals with least damage to the commercial activity related to tea. Such a wildlife management strategy can become a model that could be followed in tea-growing areas throughout the Western Ghats.