wildlife tourism

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

By the end of this topic, you are expected to;

• Describe wildlife tourism
• Explain types of wildlife tourism
• Explain the sustainability of wildlife tourism
• Explain the advantages and disadvantages of wildlife tourism

Wildlife tourism refers to an element of many nations’ travel industry that is centered around the observation and interaction with local plant and animal life in their natural habitats. Wildlife tourism involves interacting with wild animals in their natural habitat. This interaction can be passive (photography/ watching) or active (collection/ hunting). Wildlife tourism is a very important part of the tourism industry in a big number of countries such as many African and South American countries. Other countries include; Maldives, Bangladesh, Canada, India, Australia, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Sri-Lanka. Wildlife tourism has experienced rapid growth in the previous years with the focus being on eco-tourism and sustainable tourism.

Wildlife tourism growth is at 3% per year. It makes up 7% of the world's tourism industry. Wildlife tourism is a multimillion-dollar international industry that is mainly characterized by offering customized tour packages and safaris to allow close access to wildlife.

TYPES OF WILDLIFE TOURISM

The major types of wildlife tourism are;

Safaris. This is a type of tourism that takes place in the natural habitat of animals. It mainly involves tourists being driven, with the help of guides, to where animals are likely to be found. Safari is mainly associated with Africa, but is also seen in other areas of the world.

Zoos and aquariums. Zoos and aquariums are places where animals are kept captive. Zoos are for terrestrial animals while aquariums are for marine animals. This type of wildlife tourism involves interacting with captured animals. This makes it easy for tourists to find different kinds of animals in one place. Despite ethical concerns of zoos- capturing animals and denying them the freedom to survive in their habitats, they give tourists a chance to see animals that would have been probably hard to see in their natural habitats. Zoos and aquariums also give us a chance to learn more about animals. Other advantages include; they enable us to protect some species from extinction, enable an introduction of breeding programs, enable the study of animal biology and behaviors, and provision of shelter for rescued animals.

Farms. Some farms from different parts of the world allow people (tourists) into their farms to interact with crops and animals on the farm for commercial purposes. This type of wildlife tourism involves interactions like riding horses and stocking rabbits.

Birdwatching. This is also called birding. It involves watching birds in their natural habitats. This can be done with the help of binoculars.

Whale watching. This type of wildlife tourism involves tours, where tourists are taken to the sea to search and watch whales. Guides usually assist by providing information about whales, and help with spotting whales.

Hunting and fishing. These types of wildlife tourism involve pursuing and capturing animals. For example, hunting deer, bears, and pigeons. Some tourists catch fish and return them to the water. Hunting can be legal or illegal, depending on where it is done.

Diving. This is a type of wildlife tourism that enables tourists to explore life beneath the sea. For example, swimming with turtles.

SUSTAINABLE WILDLIFE TOURISM

Sustainable wildlife tourism links conservation and livelihoods. Many economies in the world benefit from wildlife tourism when tourists come to their parks to watch wildlife in its habitat. Safeguarding these attractions, which are living and irreplaceable for example elephants and rhinos, is affected by activities like poaching. In order to sustain wildlife tourism, some funds from the wildlife tourism sector are set aside for purposes like; fighting poaching in order to enhance wildlife conservation. For example, intensive conservation efforts in Rwanda's National Park has increased the number of the mountain gorilla. Sustainable wildlife is where wildlife population is maintained at a certain level.

 

ADVANTAGES OF WILDLIFE TOURISM

• Habitat restoration from tourism operations. Wildlife tourism has led to people committing their resources to preserve and restore wildlife habitats. Tourists that visit make donations to the conservancy.
• Conservation breeding. Many zoos and wildlife parks have embarked on conservation breeding mainly of animals at risk of going extinct. This ensures biodiversity.
• Anti poaching programs. Through wildlife tourism, anti poaching programs have been started and supported by tourists. This helps in the conservation of wildlife.
• Creation of awareness. Through wildlife tourism, tourists are informed of the need to conserve wildlife. This helps greatly with wildlife conservation and biodiversity.
• Creates employment. Wildlife tourism also has economic significance. It creates jobs such as tour guides, researchers, and drivers.

DISADVANTAGES OF WILDLIFE TOURISM

Wildlife tourism may cause significant disturbances to animals. Below, you will learn about the negative impacts of wildlife tourism.

• Disturbance of breeding patterns. As tourists tour the natural habitats of wildlife, they cause disturbances. This can be brought about by noise from the cars or physical destruction of their habitats like their nests. This may interrupt breeding patterns of the animals leading to a decrease in wildlife population.
• Disturbance of feeding patterns. Tourists may artificially feed wildlife during their tours. This may have dire social consequences on the social behavior patterns of animals like feeding. Artificial feeding can cause total loss of feeding behavior of wildlife.
• Disruption of parent offspring bond. Intra-specific relations of wildlife are affected by wildlife tourism. Some wildlife has been observed to abandon their offspring requiring nursing, to check tourists.
• Increased exposure to predators. Tourists may expose some wildlife species to their predators. This can be done by tourists exposing the hide outs of some wildlife species as they explore.
• Increased mortality. Poaching and wildlife hunts have increased significantly with increased wildlife tourism. These are activities that contribute to increased wildlife mortality. Other activities include destruction of habitats and pollution.

SUMMARY

We've learnt that:

• Wildlife tourism refers to an element of many nations’ travel industry that is centered around the observation and interaction with local plant and animal life in their natural habitats.
• The major types of wildlife tourism are; safaris, zoos and aquariums, farms, hunting and fishing, and diving.
• Sustainable wildlife is where wildlife population is maintained at a certain level.
• We should work towards achieving sustainable wildlife tourism.