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Crop-affected Farmers Around Panna Reported Near-daily Wild Boar and Nilgai Raids, Mostly at Night

Three nilgai grazing in open grassland at Keoladeo National Park, India
Conservation · Human–wildlife conflict

Around Panna Tiger Reserve in central India, crop-affected households reported strong overlap in where and when wild boar (Sus scrofa) and nilgai (Boselaphus tragocamelus) raided fields. The findings come from a 2026 preprint that is not yet peer reviewed. Researchers surveyed about 300 households across 19 villages during the winter of 2022, deliberately focusing on households that had experienced crop loss and whose members guarded fields at night.

This sampling design gave the researchers respondents with direct experience of nocturnal raids, but it also limits how the percentages should be read. They describe patterns among crop-affected, night-guarding households rather than the frequency of raids across every household around Panna. The authors also note that interview-based observations can be affected by reporting bias, even though opportunistic field visits were used to cross-check signs of crop raiding.

Raids were reported almost every night

During cropping seasons, 94.7% of respondents reporting wild boar and 91.6% reporting nilgai said the animals visited farmland every day. Night-time raids were especially consistent: respondents reported both species between 20:01 and 01:00, while almost all also reported visits between 01:01 and 05:00. Nearly 95% of surveyed households reported crop raids by both species.

Wild boar and nilgai used crops differently

The two ungulates differed in how they used fields. Wild boar were most often reported in medium to large groups and damaged crops across several growth stages. Nilgai were usually seen in small to medium groups and were reported to concentrate more heavily on seedlings. Chickpea and wheat were among the crops most frequently affected.

The authors interpret the stronger nilgai focus on seedlings as consistent with rapid feeding on tender, nutrient-rich plant tissue. Wild boar showed less selectivity across crop stages, which they relate to the species’ broader, opportunistic diet and ability to root for both above- and below-ground food. These are biological interpretations of the reported pattern, not behaviours directly measured with cameras or animal tracking.

Night guarding was favoured but labour-intensive

Night guarding was considered the most effective deterrent by 79% of respondents, although this was a perception reported in the survey rather than an experimental test of deterrent performance. The authors also note that guarding demands substantial labour. They propose rotational community guarding during sensitive crop stages together with institutional support for solar-powered fencing as possible ways to reduce recurring losses.

Sources and image credit

  1. Chandel, C. S., Kawlni, L., Madan, S., & Jain, D. (2026). Sleepless nights: Understanding crop raiding behaviour of wild pig and nilgai in Central India [Preprint]. Research Square. https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-8499816/v1Primary preprint posted 21 January 2026. Semi-structured household survey of crop-raiding by wild boar and nilgai in 19 villages in and around Panna Tiger Reserve, India.

Image: PJeganathan — nilgai grazing in Keoladeo National Park, India, 18 December 2014. Representative photograph, not from the Panna study. Cropped to 16:9. Source: Wikimedia Commons. · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Source

About this content: This story was produced with AI assistance within an editorial workflow developed by Wildlife Vagabond. Editorial responsibility remains with Wildlife Vagabond.How AI is used

Human–wildlife conflict

SPECIES IN THIS STORY

Species in this story

Nilgai Boselaphus tragocamelus Explore species Wild Boar Sus scrofa Explore species

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