Human–wildlife conflict is a significant problem
that often results in retaliatory killing of predators. Such
conflict is particularly pronounced between humans and
tigers Panthera tigris because of fatal attacks by tigers on
humans. We investigated the incidence and perception of
human–tiger conflict in the buffer zone of Bardia National
Park, Nepal, by interviewing 273 local householders and
27 key persons (e.g. representatives of local communities,
Park officials). Further information was compiled from
the Park’s archives. The annual loss of livestock attributable
to tigers was 0.26 animals per household, amounting to an
annual loss of 2% of livestock. Livestock predation rates were
particularly high in areas with low abundance of natural
prey. During 1994–2007 12 people were killed and a further
four injured in tiger attacks. Nevertheless, local people
generally had a positive attitude towards tiger conservation
and were willing to tolerate some loss of livestock but not
human casualties. This positive attitude indicates the
potential for implementation of appropriate conservation
measures and we propose mitigation strategies such as
education, monetary compensation and monitoring of
tigers.