quality:correction, stylistic:tone
Population management tools

Managing conflict between humans and rhesus macaques is a difficult challenge. As mentioned previously, there are many factors that go into why conflict occurs. This nuanced relationship requires thoughtfulness in management practices. Behaviour and population management are the two main areas of management that humans will look into to try and minimize conflict, protect wildlife, and promote co-existence.

When looking at and altering behaviour, crop raiding is potentially the most significant behaviour change that is crucial in reducing conflict rates. One example is the implementation of guards in agricultural settings to chase off intruding monkeys using dogs, slingshots, and firecrackers. This method is non-lethal and can alter behavioural patterns of crop raiding monkeys. Another strategy that farmers can employ is to plant alternative, buffer crops which are unattractive to monkeys in high-conflict zones, such as along the edges of macaque habitats. In urban settings, planting food trees within city periphery and country parks aim to discourage macaques from entering nearby residential areas for food.

Better establishing tourism and urban behaviour in areas that have population of rhesus macaques as means to facilitate better relationship. In areas of tourism human behaviour is necessary to prevent conflict. One method of this is to introduce public education programs as well as restrict visitors to specific viewing platforms, with the goal to minimize physical proximity. An important aspect is enforcing no feed regulations that only allow provisioning to be performed by trained staff at scheduled times. Regulating visitor behaviours that provoke aggressive responses from macaques, including noise regulation greatly benefits conflict reduction. Replacing food conditioned behaviours established by human visitors and further human education will greatly aid in returning co-existence between rhesus macaques and humans.

A method of population management is translocation. Translocation of problem macaques in urban rhesus communities in India has been employed as a non-lethal solution to human–macaque conflicts. Translocation can be seen as a short term fix due to the fact that they have the potential to return, and other rhesus macaques populations may take their place. As well translocation can be inappropriate when there is a lack of suitable habitat to move animals because of anthropogenic habitat modification. Before translocation occurs there must be a cost benefit appraisal of relative costs should be done to quantify the resources it will take. An in depth understanding of issues prior to translocation is vital for positive effects to occur. Recognizing landscape health and productivity is the first step before making management decisions.

Another tool of population management is found in sterilisation and/or contraceptive programmes that represent an alternative management practice. Fertility control looks to be a feasible management tool for reducing human–macaque conflict because it avoids the extermination of the animals and avoids costs and problems associated with translocation. Although there is potential for sterilization and general fertility control to be positive, there is limited research and understanding of the long-term effects of sterilization programs and its effectiveness.