Across the world, increasing urbanization is leading to more frequent encounters between humans and wildlife. The resulting cohabitation promotes new human–wildlife dynamics in cities and requires innovative approaches for coping with wildlife in habitats that are not conventionally considered as suitable. Here we examined how leopards (Panthera pardus) acclimate to the urban environment in Mumbai, India, and influence human politics through their presence, adaptability, and diverse relationships with humans and nonhumans. Building on perspectives from political ecology and more-than-human geography, we show how leopards may thwart the outcomes of wildlife conservation and management and also catalyze transitions toward approaches that foster coexistence. We reveal the political role that leopards play in Mumbai by examining the many ways in which they influence power dynamics among humans. Our analysis illustrates how including considerations about the political agency of wildlife in urban planning can improve nature conservation and social policies.

中文翻译：

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城市食肉动物在人类政治中的作用：印度孟买的豹子

在世界各地，不断发展的城市化导致人类与野生动物之间的接触更加频繁。由此产生的共居促进了城市中人类与野生动物的新动态，并需要创新的方法来应对传统上认为不合适的栖息地中的野生动物。在这里，我们研究了豹子（Panthera pardus）如何适应印度孟买的城市环境，并通过它们的存在、适应性以及与人类和非人类的多样化关系影响人类政治。基于政治生态学和超越人类地理学的视角，我们展示了豹子如何阻碍野生动物保护和管理的成果，并促进向促进共存的方法的转变。我们通过研究豹子影响人类权力动态的多种方式，揭示了豹子在孟买发挥的政治作用。我们的分析说明了在城市规划中考虑野生动物的政治机构如何能够改善自然保护和社会政策。