Steven Rochelle, Morrison Clare, Arthur J Michael, Castley J Guy
Environmental Futures Research Institute, Griffith School of Environment, Gold Coast campus, Griffith University, Gold Coast, Queensland, 4222, Australia.
Griffith School of Environment, Gold Coast campus, Griffith University, Gold Coast, Queensland, 4222, Australia.
PLoS One. 2015 Dec 23;10(12):e0144445. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0144445. eCollection 2015.
Formal protected areas will not provide adequate protection to conserve all biodiversity, and are not always designated using systematic or strategic criteria. Using a systematic process, the Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) network was designed to highlight areas of conservation significance for birds (i.e. IBA trigger species), and more recently general biodiversity. Land use activities that take place in IBAs are diverse, including consumptive and non-consumptive activities. Avitourism in Australia, generally a non-consumptive activity, is reliant on the IBA network and the birds IBAs aim to protect. However, companies tend not to mention IBAs in their marketing. Furthermore, avitourism, like other nature-based tourism has the potential to be both a threatening process as well as a conservation tool. We aimed to assess the current use of IBAs among Australian-based avitour companies' marketing, giving some indication of which IBAs are visited by avitourists on organised tours. We reviewed online avitour itineraries, recorded sites featuring in descriptions of avitours and which IBA trigger species are used to sell those tours. Of the 209 avitours reviewed, Queensland is the most featured state (n = 59 tours), and 73% feature at least one IBA. Daintree (n = 22) and Bruny Island (n = 17) IBAs are the most popular, nationally. Trigger species represent 34% (n = 254 out of 747) of species used in avitour descriptions. The most popular trigger species' are wetland species including; Brolga (n = 37), Black-necked Stork (n = 30) and Magpie Goose (n = 27). Opportunities exist to increase collaboration between avitour companies and IBA stakeholders. Our results can provide guidance for managing sustainability of the avitourism industry at sites that feature heavily in avitour descriptions and enhance potential cooperation between avitour companies, IBA stakeholders and bird conservation organisations.
正式的保护区无法为保护所有生物多样性提供充分保护，而且其划定并不总是依据系统或战略标准。通过一个系统流程，重要鸟类和生物多样性区域（IBA）网络旨在突出对鸟类具有保护意义的区域（即IBA触发物种），最近也涵盖了一般生物多样性。在IBA内开展的土地利用活动多种多样，包括消耗性和非消耗性活动。澳大利亚的观鸟旅游通常是一种非消耗性活动，依赖于IBA网络以及IBA旨在保护的鸟类。然而，公司在营销中往往不会提及IBA。此外，与其他自然旅游一样，观鸟旅游既可能是一种威胁性活动，也可能是一种保护工具。我们旨在评估澳大利亚观鸟旅游公司营销中对IBA的当前利用情况，以表明在有组织的旅游中观鸟游客会参观哪些IBA。我们审查了在线观鸟旅游行程，记录了观鸟旅游描述中出现的地点以及用于推销这些旅游的IBA触发物种。在所审查的209次观鸟旅游中，昆士兰是出现频率最高的州（n = 59次旅游），73%的旅游至少包含一个IBA。从全国范围来看，丹翠（n = 22）和布鲁尼岛（n = 17）的IBA最受欢迎。触发物种占观鸟旅游描述中所使用物种的34%（747种中的254种）。最受欢迎的触发物种是湿地物种，包括澳洲鹤（n = 37）、黑颈鹳（n = 30）和鹊鹅（n = 27）。观鸟旅游公司与IBA利益相关者之间存在加强合作的机会。我们的研究结果可为在观鸟旅游描述中大量出现的地点管理观鸟旅游业的可持续性提供指导，并加强观鸟旅游公司、IBA利益相关者和鸟类保护组织之间的潜在合作。
