Wildlife Tourism Malpractice Can Lead to Animal Poisoning with Plastics. - Mulero-Pázmány, Margarita Cristina (Raptor Research Foundation, 2023)
Wildlife watching of free ranging animals has positive effects on the people and the environment, such as providing income for species and areas protection and facilitating visitors’ environmental education. However, when visitors or tour operators ignore guidelines to protect wildlife, it can also have negative effects such as animals stress; alterations in space use and breeding success of certain species; and habitat degradation. This work reports a tourism practice that introduces a new potential risk for wildlife: animal poisoning, observed during a touristic boat trip in Lake Naivasha in Kenya. The guide stuffed a fish with polystyrene, whistled, stood up, shook up the fish to get the attention of the eagles, threw it to the water and an African Fish Eagle got it and ate it. Other tourist reports and online comments suggest that this practice is widespread and may be affecting other species and habitats. The use of polystyrene involves substantial poison risks including physical impairment and toxicological effects for the eagles, negatively affects other species and contributes to environmental pollution. In addition to the polystyrene-related risk that the study highlights here for its novelty, the touristic practice is based on wildlife attraction through artificial feeding that can alter natural animal behavior patterns and population numbers. The intervention of local authorities may be needed to discourage polystyrene use and control this inappropriate guides’ behavior. Besides, tourism education must be promoted to guarantee the compatibility of wildlife tourism with environmental protection.
Keywords: Fauna - Efectos del turismo; Aves - Hábitos y conducta - Efectos del turismo; African Fish-Eagle; Haliaeetus vocifer; Artificial feeding; Microplastics; Polystyrene; Wildlife poisoning; Wildlife tourism