Wildlife and human use of buffer-zone areas in a wildlife sanctuary

Context. Buffer zones are supposed to serve the dual purpose of 'extension buffering', or an extension of core habitat areas, and 'socio buffering' to provide goods and services to humans; however, few studies have evaluated both human use of buffer zones and the occurrence of wildlife. Aims. The aim of the present study was to quantify the effects of human disturbance on wildlife by recording the use of the 4-km-wide buffer zone of Huai Kha Kaeng Wildlife Sanctuary (HKKWS), Thailand, by humans and domestic animals. Methods. Occurrence of signs of large mammals were recorded along 37 transects and relationships among distance to settlements, human activities, occurrence of domestic animals and different wildlife species were analysed. Key results. In total, 210 interviewed respondents from adjacent villages all used the buffer zone, and the transect survey revealed that a large proportion of the plots (71%) were used by humans and/or domestic animals. The frequency of human use decreased linearly with distance from the buffers-zone edge, whereas the use by cattle decreased rapidly at a distance of 2000m from the buffer-zone edge. In general, the HKKWS buffer zone was a suitable habitat for several wildlife species. Sambar deer and banteng occurred in >25% of the plots. The proportion of plots with signs of sambar deer, banteng and elephant was negatively associated with the proportion of plots with signs of domestic animals, whereas the proportion of plots with signs of common muntjac was negatively associated with the proportion of plots with signs of human activities. Conclusions. The results from the present study suggest that the 4-km buffer zone in HKKWS reduces the impact of both humans and domestic animals. Implications. The size of human populations, restrictions for grazing domestic animals and habitat quality are suggested to be factors of importance for establishment of well designed buffer zones.