Abstract

While tourism may provide economic benefits for conservation projects, this relationship is unsustainable if visitors reduce the viability of local ecosystems through the disturbance of wildlife. Tiritiri Matangi Island, in New Zealand, encourages tourism in order to fund its ongoing species' recovery and habitat restoration programs, yet the impact of this tourism on the local wildlife is currently unknown. We examined nest site selection in open nesting forest birds, and the reproductive success and nest box selection of the endangered cavitynesting stitchbird or hihi Notiomystis cincta, relative to their proximity to public walking tracks. Birds did not avoid nesting near walking tracks and there was no difference between the reproductive parameters of hihi nesting in areas close to public pathways and those in areas where the public had no access. The general population trends of all species monitored on the island suggest that any negative effects posed by tourism are minor and are currently outweighed by the benefits it generates. However, such a relationship is not guaranteed, and ongoing monitoring of tourism impacts on the conservation values of the island is encouraged. (c) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords

tourism effects; nest site selection; avian reproductive success; stitchbird; hihi; Tiritiri Matangi Island

Published in

Tourism Management
2008, volume: 29, number: 4, pages: 730-739
Publisher: ELSEVIER SCI LTD

Authors' information