Human–Wildlife Interaction

The term ‘wildlife’ can be defined differently, and often specifically refers to free- living non domesticated fauna, although it may also include flora. Depending on the context, such as different cultural perspectives, it might be defined, for example, as animals living free in their natural environment, or all non- owned animals, or as any living beings that are neither human nor domesticated (Décory, 2019). Indeed, these definitions can become unclear when wildlife interacts with humans. For instance, it might be debated whether the use of the term wildlife is appropriate for animal species living free in an urban environment but relying on human food such as waste, or captive animals that might have once lived free in their habitat. In this chapter, we define wildlife as any non- domesticated non- human animals, including captive ‘wild’ animals, but excluding companion and livestock animals, which are discussed in other chapters. We will explore the different aspects of human– wildlife interactions, including sharing space with wildlife and using wildlife for entertainment purposes.