Wildlife Perceptions in an Urban Jungle: A Comparison between Otters, Monitor Lizards, Macaques and Pythons

Understanding human-wildlife interactions is crucial for effective urban wildlife management and conservation. This study compared Singapore residents' perceptions and awareness of scenario-based etiquette towards four prominent urban wildlife species: smooth‐coated otters (Lutrogale perspicillata), long-tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis), Malayan water monitor lizards (Varanus salvator) and reticulated pythons (Malayopython reticulatus). Using online surveys (n=399), we investigated how demographic factors and exposure to each species influence perceptions. Our results show significant differences in perceptions and etiquette responses towards each species. Respondents had the highest affinity towards otters, perceived greater property damage from mammals than reptiles, and feared terrestrial more than semi-aquatic species. Respondents’ age, parental status, frequency of park visits, involvement in wildlife programs and frequency of seeing each species significantly influenced perceptions, suggesting a need to engage older people and parents more to improve wildlife perceptions. Notably, the frequency of direct encounters with wildlife only explained 1% of variation in perceptions, suggesting that exposure or familiarity alone do not ensure coexistence with wildlife. Our findings emphasise the need for more public education on wildlife etiquette, especially regarding macaques. We found that wildlife education lowered perceptions of property damage but not fear, suggesting that addressing misconceptions and negative perceptions requires fostering positive emotional connections with wildlife. Our analysis highlights the interplay between urban aesthetics, cultural perceptions, wildlife education, and human and animal behaviour in shaping human-wildlife interactions. Most saliently, our study demonstrates the importance of species-specific approaches to improve relationships between humans and wildlife.