Cultural practices and food subsidies shape the architecture of multispecies coexistence in a tropical megacity

Nishant Kumar , Bharti Sharma

1.  Multispecies relationships among people and nature in tropical cities are increasingly shaped by pervasive waste systems, against the backdrop of changing cultural practices and infrastructure. But human–animal conflict is often managed through reactive, species-specific interventions that overlook the social-ecological processes producing urban coexistence. We examined how cultural practices and food subsidies structure coexistence in Delhi, focusing on free-ranging dogs (FRD), rhesus macaques and black kites as ground-dwelling, arboreal and aerial commensals exploiting the human niche at different spatial and temporal scales. 

2. We integrated quantitative ecological surveys, a management-intervention case study, long-term black kite research and coexistence observations across 1500 km2 of Delhi. For FRDs, we conducted photographic capture–recapture surveys across 14 stratified sampling units covering 2.95 km², ecology and the distribution of food subsidies. For macaques, we documented recolonisation following the translocation of ~50 individuals from a university in Delhi. These ecological observations were interpreted alongside semi-structured interviews (n=65) and long-term ethnographic research.

3. Delhi supported an estimated 795,313 dogs, with a mean density of 530±89 dogs/km². Surveyed neighbourhoods contained an estimated 218±51 feeding stations and 57±16 garbage accumulation points per km². Dog pack density was strongly associated with feeding infrastructure. Macaque numbers at the university campus returned to pre-intervention levels within one month, indicating rapid recolonisation where ecological conditions and resources persisted. Long-term kite research showed stable breeding densities and large landfill aggregations linked to ritual meat provisioning and refuse availability. Ethnographic findings revealed that conflict vulnerability was unevenly distributed, with outdoor workers and socioeconomically marginal groups bearing disproportionate exposure while possessing limited management agency. Cultural ambivalence toward ritual feeding—simultaneously expressing spiritual obligation and conflict concern—defied simplistic prescriptions.

4. Across taxa, coexistence was shaped not simply by animal abundance, but by how human-derived resources were organised in space, time and culture. Feeding fostered mutual recognition and conflicts, varying at scale, from individuals (dogs) to groups (macaques) and populations (kites). Coexistence management requires shifting from species control towards relationship management: modifying feeding practices, waste infrastructure, built infrastructure and stakeholder participation to address the conditions through which multispecies cities are continually produced.