Ecotourism and it's Impacts
A growing industry in coastal areas is ecotourism. Cetacean-watching tourism has increased; from 1991 to 1998, the number of tourist involved in such activities increased by 5 million. Potential benefits for ecotourism include the environmental awareness and generating revenue for the local communities. However, although ecotourism has its' benefits, it also has some downfalls. The activity is mostly boat based, leading to an increase in boat traffic around the animal and a higher risk of boat collisions. Potential negative impacts on the species include interruption on their feeding, mating, and calving cycles and separation of calves from their mothers.
Previous studies indicate that ecotourism causes increased risks and changes in behavior of bottlenose dolphins. Bottlenose dolphins in the Bay of Islands, New Zealand showed increase avoidance of swimmers, which could cause long-term effects such as displacing foraging, resting, or socializing at these locations (Constantine 2001). They also demonstrated a change in behavior in the presence of dolphin-watching tour boats. Dolphin behavior was affected by the number of boats present and boat type; resting decreased significantly with increasing number of boats. This is of major concern since resting is fundamentally important to the health of many animals and could cause physiological stress if reduced (Constantine, Brunton, and Dennis 2004). Dolphins have been observed increasing their speed and altering their course to move away from approaching boats (Nowacek, Wells, and Solow 2001). Boat interactions also influence the diving pattern of bottlenose dolphins. Dolphins display vertical avoidance, in which they will increase their dive intervals when boats were approaching (Lusseau 2003). They use acoustic cues to determine the distance of the approaching boat and plan their dives based on that information (Nowacek, Wells, and Solow 2001).
Our study will be the first to investigate the effects of human activity on the dolphin population in this location. The results of this study could give insight as to what activities by coastal communities increase changes in behaviors of bottlenose dolphins, and will contribute to understanding the effects of human impact on bottlenose dolphins and other coastal marine mammal species. This information is essential for stakeholders attempting to influence policy regarding conservation of marine areas.
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