The coronavirus pandemic initially looked like a blessing for wildlife, with fewer vehicles in national parks and birds broadcasting song over greater distances. But the rumble of warnings about covid-19鈥檚 impact on ecotourism, and the conservation efforts it funds, has built into a roar.
Kenya, one of Africa鈥檚 top destinations for safaris, has been hit particularly hard. 鈥淲e鈥檝e had quite a dramatic impact,鈥� says Drew McVey at WWF Kenya. The group found a 75 per cent decline in bookings reported by 90 per cent of the country鈥檚 ecotourism operators, as international travellers cancelled trips in the face of coronavirus restrictions and concerns.
Ecotourism is vital in the wider East Africa region, which includes Tanzania, home to one of the world鈥檚 biggest annual animal migrations. Protected wildlife areas across the whole region generate $48 billion a year through tourism, according to WWF.
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The Kenya Wildlife Service, which plays a , rhino horn and more, is funded by ecotourism revenues. It has seen one of the steepest declines in revenue, down 92 per cent. One of the country鈥檚 most famous community conservation schemes, the Mara Conservancy, has lost more than $5 million in revenue this year due to cancelled tourism bookings.
The huge declines have seen some tourism camps in reserves and conservancies close permanently, while others have gone dormant by temporarily laying off staff. 鈥淚t means we just do the basics to keep our heads above water,鈥� says McVey.
In Kenya, the hit to the jobs and revenues that normally flow from ecotourism projects to nearby villages and communities has yet to manifest itself in the form of more human-wildlife conflict. However, tolerance for such conflict has decreased. 鈥淏efore [covid-19], if you lost a bit of crop to a raiding elephant or a lion ate a cow, that knocked your pocket but you could get through. Now it [could mean] your child not going to school,鈥� says McVey.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, isolated incidents of poaching have also been reported in Kenya. 鈥淲hat we are seeing is evidence of upsurges in bushmeat hunting. Giraffe poaching has gone up as people are looking at ways to substitute their income. We鈥檝e also [seen] species like pangolin being tried to be sold again,鈥� says McVey. To help Kenyan communities in the short term, WWF has launched a .
Russ Mittermeier at the NGO Global Wildlife Conservation says that in another African biodiversity hotspot, Madagascar, ecotourism has developed over 20 years to help protect the island nation鈥檚 unique, endangered lemurs. 鈥淭hen you get this damn pandemic that shuts down ecotourism,鈥� he says.
Mountain gorillas, whose numbers have been boosted by more than 40 years of conservation funded through ecotourism, could also suffer as gorilla-watching trips in Rwanda are curtailed, he warns. Mittermeier says the impact on conservation for many places will hinge on how long the pandemic lasts: a few months will be OK, two years would be 鈥渞eally bad鈥�.
For now, the focus is on emergency funding to tide conservation and ecotourism projects over, as there is little they can do to adapt quickly, says McVey. WWF Kenya is also looking at how such schemes can diversify their revenues in the longer run, exploring everything from sustainable livestock to timber production. Some choices may conflict with tourism 鈥� people on safari don鈥檛 want to see herds of cattle, for example.
But there seems little choice but to change, as international air travel is expected to stay subdued for several years after the pandemic. 鈥淐onservation as we know it is at risk,鈥� says McVey. 鈥淚t feels like we are in a world of adapt or die.鈥�
