Research overview: patterns and drivers of leopard attacks on people near Indian cities

Leopard attacks on humans, though rare relative to encounter frequency, shape public perception and policy across urban-adjacent India. This overview surveys research on the spatial and temporal clustering of attacks, the disproportionate involvement of children, the role of dense cover such as sugarcane, and the influence of specific individual animals versus landscape conditions. It examines how waste management, stray-dog abundance, night-time human activity, and rescue-and-release practices interact to raise or lower risk. The synthesis emphasises evidence-based mitigation, including improved lighting, community awareness, behavioural guidance, and rapid response protocols, and contrasts these with reactive capture campaigns that research suggests can worsen rather than reduce conflict.