. Sustainable Ecotourism on Islands, with Special Reference to Whale Watching and Marine Protected Areas and Sanctuaries for Cetaceans
partment of Oceanography and Fisheries, University of the Azores, PT- 9901- 862 Horta, Portugal. (
Download 209.64 Kb.
|
- Navigate this page:
- Berrow, Simon
- McAdam, Jim 1 Broughton, David 1,2
1Department of Oceanography and Fisheries, University of the Azores, PT- 9901- 862 Horta, Portugal. (hmartins@dop.horta.uac.pt, msantos@notes.horta.uac.pt, _a7761@ualg.pt) 2Archie Carr Center for Seaturtle Research and Department of Zoology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611 USA. abb@zool.ufl.edu; kab@zool.ufl.eduThe main problem regarding conservation of sea turtles in the Azores is the bycatch of turtles in the longline fisheries for swordfish. In 1998 a workshop was held in Horta to review the impact of this fishery on seaturtles and to design an experiment to evaluate gear modification on longline bycatch rates of sea turtles. The experiment which started in 2000 has tested different hook types and combinations using a commercial fishing boat and gear. The conclusions are not yet definitive but the preliminary results show that circle hooks decrease the rate of throat hooking in loggerhead turtles. This result has important implications for reduced sea turtle mortality. There was also a significant effect in the rate of turtles caught as the hour of day of line retrieval increased. Based on satellite telemetry data, there are significant differences in the post-hooking behaviour of throat hooked turtles vs. behaviour of controls with respect to dive depth, dive time and turtle movements. In summary, gear modification has excellent potential to reduce sea turtle interaction and bycatch. 11.40-12.00 (O-12) Frameworks for developing responsible whale watching in Ireland and on other islands in the Northeast Atlantic. Berrow, SimonIrish Whale and Dolphin Group, Merchants Quay, Kilrush, County Clare, Ireland. (Simon.Berrow@iwdg.ie).Whale watching is one of the fastest growing tourism industries in the world with an estimated growth between 1991 and 1998 of 12% per annum. In Ireland, whale watching is estimated to be already worth €7.9 million per annum but the potential is still under-developed, especially off the south coast. The Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG) have identified at least four cetacean (whales, dolphins and porpoise) species in Ireland with good to excellent potential for developing a whale watching industry. The IWDG support the development of responsible whale watching in Irish waters. Whale watching can bring economic benefits to coastal communities and can enhance the conservation status and public awareness of cetaceans. However, all cetacean species in Ireland are protected and some species are declining or rare and the subject of conservation measures. Other populations are still severely depleted after decades of over-exploitation. In order to achieve the development of responsible whalewatching, which brings positive benefits to people and cetaceans, a range of frameworks are necessary. In this paper we will present these frameworks and assess their application to developing or managing whale watching on Atlantic islands. 12.00-12.20 (O-17) Humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) of the Cape Verde Islands. Wenzel, Frederick W.1.; Allen, Judy2; Berrow, Simon3; Jann, Beatrice4; Lien, Jon5; Martin, Anthony R.6 & Seton, Rosemary E.21National Marine Fisheries Service, Northeast Fisheries Science Center, 166 Water St., Woods Hole, MA 02543, USA. (Frederick.Wenzel@noaa.gov); 2College of the Atlantic, 105 Eden St., Bar Harbor, Maine 04609, USA, (jallen@coa.edu; rseton@coa.edu); 3Irish Whale and Dolphin Group, Merchants Quay, Kilrush, Co. Clare, Ireland,(Simon.Berrow@iwdg.ie); 4Swiss Whale Society, via Nolgio 3, CH-6900 Massagno, Switzerland, (jann@whales.ch); 5Biopsychology Programme and Ocean Science Ctr, Memorial University, St. John’s Newfoundland, Canada; (jlien@morgan.ucs.mun.ca); 6British Antarctic Survey, High Cross, Madingley Road, Cambridge, CB3 OET, UK, (ARM@bas.ac.uk).The movements of individual humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) can be tracked by matching photographs of the distinctive markings on the ventral sides of their flukes. During several winter-spring research cruises between 1990 and 2004, a total of 72 individual humpback whales were identified from the waters of the Cape Verde Islands. These were compared with over 5,500 individual fluke photographs taken in the North Atlantic. One match was made with a whale previously photographed in the Denmark Strait off Iceland, a second match to Bear Island, Norway thus providing the first direct evidence of a link between the humpbacks in tropical waters of the eastern North Atlantic and a high latitude feeding grounds. Five inter-annual matches of humpback fluke photographs have demonstrated a return rate to these waters. These findings are consistent with the mitochondrial DNA evidence of at least two distinct breeding populations of humpback whales in the North Atlantic. 12.20-12.40 (O-20) The current status of, and threats to, the flora of the Falkland Islands, South Atlantic. McAdam, Jim1 & Broughton, David 1,21Dept of Applied Plant Science, Queen's University Belfast, Newforge Lane, Belfast, BT9 5PX. (jim.mcadam@dardni.gov.uk 2David.Broughton@scottwilson.com).The Falkland Islands (51º - 53ºS; 57º - 62ºW) are an archipelago of over 700 islands in the South Atlantic, covering an area of 12173 km2 and approximately 500 km from mainland South America. Currently there are 248 species in the vascular flora, 173 native and 175 non-native taxa. The juxtaposition of the islands between Antarctica, South America and other remote south Atlantic Islands gives them high biogeographic importance. Since the mid 1980's a programme of land reform and considerable inward investment has put greater pressure on the natural resources of the islands, largely through greater ease of countryside access and pressure to diversify the rural economy from the traditional land use of sheep ranching. A red data list has been produced which includes 23 threatened plant species. The threats to the flora will be discussed in the context of land use changes, public access to the countryside, legislation, legislation to protect the countryside and increased emphasis being placed on sustainable ecotourism. 14.00-14.40 (Keynote - K3). Recent Plant Speciation in Britain and Ireland. Download 209.64 Kb. Share with your friends:
|