An updated literature review examining the impacts of tourism on marine mammals over the last fifteen years (2000-2015) to inform research and management programs.

Moving towards a sustainable cetacean-based tourism industry – A case study from Mozambique

“…When asked if operators should directly participate in marine conservation events, 23% were not sure and 51% strongly agreed. These results indicate that operators and their tours are an effective tool to be used for the education of environmental sustainability (Ballantyne et al, 2011;Bentz et al, 2016;Draheim et al, 2010;Guerra and Dawson, 2016;Lück, 2015Lück, , 2016, reinforcing the need for an educational and awareness component to any guided marine activity (Bentz et al, 2016;Buultjens et al, 2016;Filby et al, 2015;Lück, 2015Lück, , 2016Machernis et al, 2018;Scarpaci et al, 2003).…”

“…This general trend of preferring activities with free animals may indicate that people support the idea of CBT being an effective vehicle for environmental education programmes. Including an educational and awareness component to the tour is an effective method to further develop a conservation awareness in people (Bentz et al, 2016a;Filby et al, 2015;Lück, 2016Lück, , 2015aMachernis et al, 2018;Scarpaci et al, 2003).…”

“…The CoC be divided into two distinct documents; the first for CBT operators and the second for all remaining boaters, including both recreational and commercial. In particular, the codes should have simple, clear, realistic regulations and be feasible in the field (Machernis et al, 2018;Martin et al, 2016;Parsons and Woods-Ballard, 2003;Scarpaci et al, 2004Scarpaci et al, , 2003Steckenreuter et al, 2012b;Sullivan and Torres, 2018). Separating the codes and making them more accessible to the different user groups should increase understanding and compliance.…”

“…Monitoring of the dolphin population is crucial to determine health and disturbance levels (Constantine et al, 2001(Constantine et al, , 2004Christiansen et al, 2010;Garcia et al, 2017;Inman et al, 2016;Machernis et al, 2018;Meissner et al, 2015;Pérez-Jorge et al, 2016;Pirotta et al, 2015Pirotta et al, , 2018Steckenreuter et al, 2012a;Trave et al, 2017).…”