Human-Wildlife Coexistence in Anthropogenic Landscapes - A Comprehensive Case Study of Community-Driven Baboon Management in Simonstown South Africa (2020-2025) v7

Human-Wildlife Coexistence in Anthropogenic Landscapes - A Comprehensive Case Study of Community-Driven Baboon Management in Simonstown South Africa (2020-2025) Author: Carol Knox, MEd, (cum laude) Independent Researcher:Carol Knox (0000-0002-3888-8100) - ORCID Acknowledgements: Luana Pasanisi, Data provision, Feedback: Founder and Executive Director of Green Group Simonstown (GGST) - Project Lead- Luana Pasanisi (0009-0005-9655-2778) - ORCIDStefania Falcon Project Lead, Feedback. Co-Director of GGST -Stefania FALCON (0009-0001-7954-6270) - ORCIDContact Carol Knox: aruraza@gmail.com PREPRINT - Not Peer Reviewed Submitted to Zenodo: [v.1 25/10/2025, v. 4 on 26/10/2025 and v. 6 31/10/2025 updates and v. 7 27/01/2026]Reviewed up to the end of 5.1. This manuscript has not yet undergone peer review. It is being shared as a preprint to facilitate rapid dissemination and to establish priority of findings. Abstract This longitudinal case study, developed by Carol Knox, examines a five-year (2020–2025) community-led wildlife management intervention on the Cape Peninsula, South Africa, aimed at promoting ecological integrity via the protection of Chacma baboon (Papio Ursinus) in a UNESCO World Heritage site-urban interface, through harmonious coexistence strategies. Employing Yin's (2018) rigorous case study research framework, previously applied in the lead author's educational research, this study uses a mixed-methods approach integrating participant observation, policy analysis, behavioural monitoring, institutional ethnography, and visual ethnography. The research draws on key theoretical frameworks, optimal foraging theory (MacArthur & Pianka, 1966; Lima & Dill, 1990), community conservation theory (Berkes, 2007; Ostrom, 1990), and institutional analysis (Ferguson, 1994), to interpret observed behavioural and governance patterns. Findings demonstrate that systematic reduction of anthropogenic attractants and trust-based community monitoring significantly reduce urban baboon disturbances while preserving troop social cohesion and natural ranging behaviour. Conversely, shifts to aversive management techniques resulted in immediate behavioural setbacks, highlighting the fragility of human-wildlife relationships and the importance of consistent, evidence-based conservation methods. These insights advance theoretical understanding and offer practical coexistence strategies within UNESCO World Heritage landscapes facing rapid anthropogenic change. Following community notification, multi-scalar accountability mechanisms (UNESCO World Heritage Centre and South Africa's Public Protector) were activated from June-September 2025, demonstrating how community actors can leverage international and domestic oversight frameworks. UNESCO then activated oversight of proposed lethal management interventions, confirming direct contact with South African authorities to assess potential impacts on Outstanding Universal Value (Bascomb, 2025). When evidence-based conservation is marginalised, this establishes a procedural precedent for community conservation practitioners globally while raising important empirical questions about whether such accountability mechanisms translate into policy constraint on state authority. Keywords: human-wildlife interface, coexistence, community conservation, chacma baboons, UNESCO World Heritage, Papio ursinus, urban ecology