Roxana Rojas-Vera Pinto, University of Reading

In order to promote the coexistence of humans and Andean bears, it is essential to understand where and how interactions occur. Previous studies have shown that human-Andean bear interaction (HABI) events are often described in the literature using incomplete and heterogeneous information, limiting our ability to assess their context, drivers, and outcomes. The aim of this study is to enhance the collection and reporting of HABI events by providing wildlife managers, researchers, and conservation practitioners with practical guidelines for HABI data collection and reporting.
A three-day workshop was held in Colombia in 2025, attended by 10 Andean bear specialists from across the species’ range. Following an exchange of knowledge and experiences related to HABI data collection in different socio-economic contexts, we collaboratively developed guidelines to improve both systematic monitoring and opportunistic data collection. First, we identified and reached consensus on terms related to human-wildlife interactions, including how to define an event. We then identified 13 categories and 25 subcategories of HABI, of which 11 subcategories were classified as conflict related. Furthermore, we established minimum requirements and best practices for HABI data collection and reporting. We propose that a HABI event should, at a minimum, record and report the date and time (at a minimum the year), geographic location (as coordinates) and interaction typology. To facilitate opportunistic reporting, we designed a standardized form that can be adapted to different formats or platforms.
The guidelines and form will be presented as a booklet in Spanish and will be shared with stakeholders across the species’ distribution range. A second workshop is planned for 2026 to focus on training and implementation of the guidelines with stakeholders from several management agencies and NGOs.