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The Biology of Sea Turtles, Vol. II
to turtles being turned away in their attempts to emerge onto the beach (Jacobson
and Lopez, 1994). A principal goal of this monitoring is to educate trained guides
so that impacts on sea turtles are limited and so that the educational experience of
visitors is maximized.
The total value of sea turtle ecotourism and its effects on sea turtle conservation
have been most extensively measured for the turtle watch operation at Mon Repos,
where between 14,000 and 24,000 tourists a year come to view nesting or hatchling
sea turtles (Tisdell and Wilson, 2001a; 2001b; in press; in review; Wilson and Tisdell,
2001). The operation is regulated by the Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service and
takes place on two adjacent protected beaches that serve the largest concentration
of accessible (on continental beaches) nesting sea turtles (principally loggerheads)
in eastern Australia. The operation has developed since 1985 to become a focus for
both scientific research and tourism. In this development, Tisdell and Wilson (2001b)
noted a change in visitation that fit Duffus and Dearden’s (1990) hypothesis that the
number of “novice generalists” (in this case, tourists who enjoy nature but who have
a less specific interest in sea turtles) visiting an ecotourism attraction will increase
with time more quickly than the number of “expert specialists” (in this case, sea
turtle biologists). The importance behind this distinction between types of visitors
is that, in comparison to specialists, novice generalists are likely to demand greater
accommodations near the beach in the form of hotels, restaurants, and ancillary
entertainment. However, contrary to Duffus and Dearden’s hypothesis that novice
generalists tend to increase with time along a logistic curve, Tisdell and Wilson
found that visiting tourists varied annually and did not increase toward an asymptote.
Thus, Mon Repos may be different from other ecotourism beaches where there may
be a greater potential for an exploding visitation rate and increasing accommodation
needs near the beach, and where the beach itself may not be completely within a
protected reserve.
The nightly visitors to Mon Repos’ nesting turtles pay a small fee that is only
a small fraction of a visitor’s total cost. Tisdell and Wilson (2001b) reported that
tourists in the area to watch turtles spend money on transportation, lodging, food,
and additional items, with the greatest part of this spending occurring within 25 km
of the Mon Repos beach. The effect of turtle-watching visitors on the local economy
was calculated to be approximately 800,000 AUD ($0.45 million USD) per year.
The magnitude of this economy rivals whale-watching (another local ecotourism
draw), sugarcane farming, and dairy and beef production — an economic effect that
is especially high considering that the length of the season is only 4 months each year.
Tisdell and Wilson (2001a; 2001b) developed a contingent valuation of sea turtles
at the Mon Repos turtle-watch operation by surveying participants’ willingness to
pay and their attitudes toward conservation. The resulting contingent valuation
revealed that the average visitor who had just been on a turtle watch was willing to
pay approximately 50% more for the entrance fee to watch turtles. Furthermore,
approximately half of survey respondents reported that their experience at Mon
Repos would affect their propensity to contribute money for sea turtle conservation.
In an open-ended survey question asking visitors the maximum amount that they
would be willing to pay to protect sea turtles in Australia over a 10-year period,
respondents answered between approximately 2 AUD (including zero bids) and 2.50
1123 book.book Page 372 Monday, November 11, 2002 11:11 AM
The Biology of Sea Turtles, Vol. II
to turtles being turned away in their attempts to emerge onto the beach (Jacobson
and Lopez, 1994). A principal goal of this monitoring is to educate trained guides
so that impacts on sea turtles are limited and so that the educational experience of
visitors is maximized.
The total value of sea turtle ecotourism and its effects on sea turtle conservation
have been most extensively measured for the turtle watch operation at Mon Repos,
where between 14,000 and 24,000 tourists a year come to view nesting or hatchling
sea turtles (Tisdell and Wilson, 2001a; 2001b; in press; in review; Wilson and Tisdell,
2001). The operation is regulated by the Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service and
takes place on two adjacent protected beaches that serve the largest concentration
of accessible (on continental beaches) nesting sea turtles (principally loggerheads)
in eastern Australia. The operation has developed since 1985 to become a focus for
both scientific research and tourism. In this development, Tisdell and Wilson (2001b)
noted a change in visitation that fit Duffus and Dearden’s (1990) hypothesis that the
number of “novice generalists” (in this case, tourists who enjoy nature but who have
a less specific interest in sea turtles) visiting an ecotourism attraction will increase
with time more quickly than the number of “expert specialists” (in this case, sea
turtle biologists). The importance behind this distinction between types of visitors
is that, in comparison to specialists, novice generalists are likely to demand greater
accommodations near the beach in the form of hotels, restaurants, and ancillary
entertainment. However, contrary to Duffus and Dearden’s hypothesis that novice
generalists tend to increase with time along a logistic curve, Tisdell and Wilson
found that visiting tourists varied annually and did not increase toward an asymptote.
Thus, Mon Repos may be different from other ecotourism beaches where there may
be a greater potential for an exploding visitation rate and increasing accommodation
needs near the beach, and where the beach itself may not be completely within a
protected reserve.
The nightly visitors to Mon Repos’ nesting turtles pay a small fee that is only
a small fraction of a visitor’s total cost. Tisdell and Wilson (2001b) reported that
tourists in the area to watch turtles spend money on transportation, lodging, food,
and additional items, with the greatest part of this spending occurring within 25 km
of the Mon Repos beach. The effect of turtle-watching visitors on the local economy
was calculated to be approximately 800,000 AUD ($0.45 million USD) per year.
The magnitude of this economy rivals whale-watching (another local ecotourism
draw), sugarcane farming, and dairy and beef production — an economic effect that
is especially high considering that the length of the season is only 4 months each year.
Tisdell and Wilson (2001a; 2001b) developed a contingent valuation of sea turtles
at the Mon Repos turtle-watch operation by surveying participants’ willingness to
pay and their attitudes toward conservation. The resulting contingent valuation
revealed that the average visitor who had just been on a turtle watch was willing to
pay approximately 50% more for the entrance fee to watch turtles. Furthermore,
approximately half of survey respondents reported that their experience at Mon
Repos would affect their propensity to contribute money for sea turtle conservation.
In an open-ended survey question asking visitors the maximum amount that they
would be willing to pay to protect sea turtles in Australia over a 10-year period,
respondents answered between approximately 2 AUD (including zero bids) and 2.50
1123 book.book Page 372 Monday, November 11, 2002 11:11 AM