Skip navigation
  • Home
  • Responsibility
  • Wildlife
    • Whales
    • Dolphins
    • Sharks & Rays
    • Seals
    • Turtles
    • Manatees
    • Seabirds
  • Tourism
    • Cage Diving
    • In Water
    • Wildlife Watching
      • Land based
      • Boat based
      • Aerial based
    • Feeding Wildlife
    • Opportunistic Watching
  • Education
  • Photos
  • Blog
  • About
  • Contact

Wildlife Tourism

A non-consumptive activity focusing on the observation of free-ranging animals
read more »

Marine Fauna

Species in Marine Wildlife Tourism

read more

Responsibility

Safe Interactions for Visitor and Animal

read more

Education

Learn about the the Species you are observing

read more

New Publication

2022-02-12 05:02 2

Abstract:

Commercial in-water interactions (IWIs) with wildlife may hold potential risks for their participants. Precautionary mechanisms for mitigating such risk factors are crucial for safe human–wildlife encounters. One of those tools is the provision of skilled in-water guides, yet across the industry it is not a standard practice. This article communicates the relevance of in-water guides for the safety and well-being of tour participants, substantiated by semistructured interview data obtained in three case study locations in the South Pacific. Participants interacting with humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae), New Zealand fur seals (Arctocephalus forsteri), and bull sharks (Carcharhinus leucas) reported various benefits from the presence of in-water guides, including anxiety relief, elevated confidence and perception of safety, and obtainment of information on animal behavior. Apart from tourist safety, a deployment of in-water guides would also constitute an effective way of managing inappropriate tourist behavior. Hence, the results of this study strongly suggest the inclusion of in-water guides in commercial operations for tourist safety and management in future licensing schemes.

marine-wildlife.org
Chantal D. Pagel, PhD

 

  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • Xing
  • ResearchGate
Skip navigation
  • Unsubscribe Newsletter
  • Legal
  • Privacy
  • Created with ❤ by pascalpagel.de
  • Copyright 2023 marine-wildlife.org