Proximity and animal welfare in the context of tourist interactions with habituated dolphins

Abstract

The importance of proximity and animal welfare for wildlife tourist satisfaction in the context of interactions with habituated dolphinsThe long-term sustainability of wildlife tourism depends on integrating visitor demands with resource management, requiring an understanding of tourist motivation. Managing the conflict between access to the animals and welfare, however, may diminish the experience for tourists. This paper identifies trade-offs tourists are willing to make between access and animal welfare, associated with feeding habituated bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops sp.) in Monkey Mia, Western Australia. Using a choice modelling technique, we were able to determine monetary values of visitor experiences. Compared to the current guaranteed interaction with dolphins (and a daily resort entrance fee), respondents were willing to pay significantly higher hypothetical entrance fees to avoid a decrease in proximity to, or probability of, the dolphin interaction. However, negative impacts on dolphin welfare had a negative impact on visitor utility. Over 80% of visitors (n = 244) accepted management regulations resulting in decreased time with and proximity to dolphins, if those addressed welfare concerns and were communicated clearly. Thus, while visitors placed the greatest value on the proximity and predictability, they were willing to trade off these aspects if they improved dolphin welfare. We provide management suggestions based on these results.

Human speech reduces pygmy marmoset (Cebuella pygmaea) feeding and resting at a Peruvian tourist site, with louder volumes decreasing visibility

“…For example, informing visitors of the negative link between tourist‐boat proximity and stress in Humboldt penguins ( Spheniscus humboldti ) led to visitors selecting tour options that reduced negative welfare effects (Vásquez Lavín, Gelcich, Paz Lerdón, & Montealegre Bustos, ). Similar results have been found for dolphin tourism (Bach & Burton, ; Filby, Stockin, & Scarpaci, ), and notably, visitors are willing to accept management regulations that are detrimental to their own experience if it means safeguarding dolphin welfare (Bach & Burton, ). Given these previous positive results, informing tourists that talking disturbs primates and may cause them to move out of sight (especially if they speak loudly) may be enough to encourage tourists to remain quiet when viewing primates.…”

Data from a survey to determine visitor attitudes and knowledge about the provisioning of wild dolphins at a marine tourism destination

“…While visitors can experience the dolphins in regulated encounters coordinated by the DDC, anecdotal evidence suggests that people use private boats to seek out and interact with these wild dolphins on their own terms, which may have a negative impact on the resident dolphin population [1], [5].…”

Importance-performance analysis to inform visitor management at marine wildlife tourism destinations

“…Research that investigates visitor opinions and satisfaction with MWT operations often employs questionnaires as the method of obtaining information from visitors (e.g. Mayes et al, 2004;Orsini and Newsome, 2005;Draheim et al, 2010;Filby et al, 2015;Lü ck and Porter, 2019;Simpson et al, 2016;Bach and Burton, 2017;McIntosh and Wright, 2017;Sitar et al, 2017). However, to the best of our knowledge, only a few English language articles have applied IPA to researching MWT experiences (Patroni, 2018; Three studies on cetacean and Whale Shark tourism that utilised the IPA technique were able to identify key areas where management needed to be improved.…”