Whale shark economics: a valuation of wildlife tourism in South Ari Atoll, Maldives

Abstract

Whale sharks attract large numbers of tourists, divers and snorkelers each year to South Ari Atoll in the Republic of Maldives. Yet without information regarding the use and economic extent of the attraction, it is difficult to prioritize conservation or implement effective management plans. We used empirical recreational data and generalized mixed statistical models to conduct the first economic valuation (with direct spend as the primary proxy) of whale shark tourism in Maldives. We estimated that direct expenditures for whale shark focused tourism in the South Ari Marine Protected Area for 2012 and 2013 accounted for US$7.6 and $9.4 million respectively. These expenditures are based on an estimate of 72,000–78,000 tourists who are involved in whale shark excursions annually. That substantial amount of income to resort owners and operators, and tourism businesses in a relatively small area highlights the need to implement regulations and management that safeguard the sustainability of the industry through ensuring guest satisfaction and whale shark conservation.

Population structure, residency patterns and movements of whale sharks in Southern Leyte, Philippines: results from dedicated photo‐ID and citizen science

“…As a result of these predictable aggregations, and the charismatic nature of the sharks, whale sharks support large, profitable tourism endeavours (Davis et al , ; Topelko and Dearden, ; Gallagher and Hammerschlag, ; Cagua et al , ). The economic benefits associated with such industries are paramount for the communities directly or indirectly involved, yet the limits of acceptable change from this non‐consumptive use of the species have yet to be defined in order to sustainably manage the human–shark interaction (Duffus and Dearden, ; Quiros, ; Remolina‐Suárez et al , ; Catlin et al , ).…”

Assessing the impacts of tourism on the world's largest fish Rhincodon typus at Panaon Island, Southern Leyte, Philippines

“…This figure is probably considerably higher now considering the 2015 whale shark season received 20 834 tourists, more than double that of 2006 (Rob & Barnes, .). The Maldives receives up to 78 000 tourists a year that engage with whale shark tourism, spending up to US$ 9.4 million (Cagua, Collins, Hancock, & Rees, ). Similarly, at a provisioning site in the Philippines, more than 200 000 tourists visited in 2015, spending a minimum of US$ 5 million (Provincial Auditing Office, Cebu, pers.…”

The economic role of sharks in a major ecotourism archipelago in the western South Atlantic

“…Sharks have become increasingly popular and important for tourism; during the last three decades, shark diving has generated considerable income for the communities exploiting this tourism asset [3]. As a result, the number of economic value assessments has increased in diving destinations with a high incidence of sharks, such as the Caribbean [4], Micronesia [5], South Africa [6,7], Maldives [8] and Australia [9,10].…”