Poaching has been a serious concern in many developing countries. It has been also a well discussed topic during the last few decades (Heltberg, 2001; Kremer and Morcom 2000; Lopes 2014; Taylor 2011). Kremer and Morcom (2000) studied elephant poaching and found that the prospect of future scarcity of storable goods (such as elephant ivory) increases poaching. Taylor (2011) found that technical innovation in the sector that uses wildlife produce (such as buffalo hide) lead to the increased incidence of poaching. Over exploitation of common property resource and the need to protect such resources with government induced regulation (or other relevant taxes when imposing such tax is feasible) has been the major topic of discussion since Gordon (1954).

Recent news reports from countries such as Nepal, which has made progress in education, show disturbing trends on poaching. Local media has reported on rising trends in poaching. Several of these poachers are uneducated, but hail from districts adjacent to the national parks. Since these districts are actually making progress in education fronts, the rise poses question on whether the assumed relationship between education and poaching is valid. Some previous studies on the impact of education on participation in forest resources management groups had also found inconclusive evidence regarding the role of education in conservation. For example, Agarwal et al. (2005) found negative relationship between education and participation in community level management groups.

Our objective is to provide a new approach in studying the incidences of poaching and advance the notion that focus on education (and hence income) promoting policies alone won’t be sufficient to protect wildlife. We developed an economic theory on poaching and then test the importance of education on poaching using data on wildlife poaching from Nepal, the home of one of the largest concentrations of endangered species such as tigers, one horn rhinoceros, wild elephants and Gharial crocodiles.