FARMING THE FOREST EDGE - VULNERABLE PLACES AND PEOPLE AROUND KIBALE NATIONAL-PARK, UGANDA

Subsistence farmers near Kibale National Park, Uganda, fear and resent many wildlife species. In this article I compare records of crop dama ge by wildlife and livestock with local complaints about the worst ani mals and the most vulnerable crops. I discuss the concordance and disc repancies in complaints versus actual damage in light of physical para meters of risk and of social factors that shape perceptions and vulner abilities. Crop losses were greatest at the edge of the forest, where immigrants are disproportionately represented. State proprietorship of wildlife amplifies local vulnerability and constrains traditional cop ing strategies, such as hunting.