Revisiting wildlife crop foraging: why don’t all individuals forage on crops?

Abstract

One of the more prominent aspects of conflict between humans and wildlife is crop foraging by wild animals. A number of theories have been proposed to understand the basis of this high-risk behaviour, ranging from optimum foraging strategy and nutritional benefits to loss of habitat and reduction in resource availability. However existing research does not fully explain why despite the benefits associated with this activity, all or even most of the individuals in a group do not adopt this behaviour. We use primates as a model system, and view crop foraging through the lens of animal innovation to understand why wild animals diversely exhibit this behaviour. Drawing on published literature and recent findings, we propose psychological and physiological mechanisms that potentially shape crop foraging behaviour in wild animals.