Finding the balance: sea turtle tourism interaction in Apo Island, Philippines

The Apo Island Protected Landscape and Seascape (AIPLS) is one of the best examples of a marine protected area in the Philippines but no dedicated work has ever been done to assess the population of green turtles (Chelonia... [ view full abstract ]

The Apo Island Protected Landscape and Seascape (AIPLS) is one of the best examples of a marine protected area in the Philippines but no dedicated work has ever been done to assess the population of green turtles (Chelonia mydas) that use the area, despite becoming a major driver of tourism on the island in recent years. Diving tourism and dedicated snorkeling interactions with turtles have grown fast, with >17,000 tourists (51% Filipino) visiting the island in 2015. To assess the effect of the tourists on the presence and habitat use of the turtles, behavioral observation, habitat surveys and photographic identification were conducted in June-July 2017 and daily since November 2017. Temperature-Depth Recorder archival tags were also deployed on 2 resident turtles to further understand habitat use and complement visual observation data. Over 2000 encounters with green turtles were recorded, with an average of 30.5 individuals identified per day (range 6 – 60). To expand our understanding on the presence and site fidelity of the resident turtles, the photographic catalogue has been integrated with systematic but opportunistic photo-identification data collected since 2013 by a resident dive operator and online citizen science searches, with the longest photographic match dating back to 2007. Over 500 questionnaires were administered to tourists and local stakeholders to assess their perception on the interaction and areas for improvement. AIPLS is an important hotspot for green turtles and the local community heavily rely on their economic value for tourism, therefore finding a balance is of outmost importance.