The Potential of Whale Watching in the Caribbean: 1999+

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Saba Population: 1,500. Land area: 13 sq km. Tourist arrivals by air: 10,556 (-7.9% on prev. yr.) Tourist arrivals by cruise ship: None. Total Tourist Expenditures: See St. Maarten. Tourism Budget: Not reported. GDP at factor cost: Not reported. 1994 figures on whale watching: Nil. 1998 figures on whale watching: Nil. Whale-watching ports (current or potential): Limited information. Land-based viewing sites: Limited information. Whale-watching potential: Minimal to moderate. (Figures above are latest figures for 1997, except as noted.) The smallest of all the Dutch Antilles at 5 square miles (13 sq km), Saba has low key tourism on a rocky volcanic island and is one of the world's top scuba diving destinations. In 1997, Saba received 10,600 visitors, up 7.9% on the previous year. Saba's waters have been protected in a model marine reserve since 1987 and are largely unspoilt and treasured by divers. According to Tom Van't Hof, who has worked to help set up and manage the marine reserve, the diving boats report occasional sightings of various tropical dolphins and sometimes humpbacks in late winter. There are some marine nature and sightseeing cruises offered out of Fort Hill on Fort Bay, from the southwestern shore of Saba. These tours could include dolphins, although dedicated tours based on dolphin or whale tourism from Saba do not seem possible at present. St. Eustatius Population: 1,960. Land area: 27 sq km. Tourist arrivals by air: 8,533 (-3.7% on prev. yr.) Tourist arrivals by cruise ship: None. Total Tourist Expenditures: See St. Maarten. Tourism Budget: Not reported. GDP at factor cost: Not reported. 1994 figures on whale watching: Nil. 1998 figures on whale watching: Nil. Whale-watching ports (current or potential): Limited information. Land-based viewing sites: Limited information. Whale-watching potential: Minimal. (Figures above are latest figures for 1997, except as noted.) Popularly called Statia, Sint Eustatius is a tiny 8-square-mile (21 sq km) volcanic island located SE of Saba, between Saba and St. Kitts and Nevis. The usual gateway is through St. Maarten, 38 miles (61 km) to the north. Statia is even more tranquil and off the beaten track than Saba, and with a less developed tourism infrastructure. In 1997, Statia received 8,500 tourists, up 3.7% on the previous year. Like Saba, Statia also has excellent diving though it is focused toward the offshore wrecks. As of 1998, the local government began setting up mooring buoys to establish a national marine park, following Saba's example. As with St. Maarten and Saba, cetacean surveys would be needed first before such tourism could be considered. 42
Aruba Population: 89,000. Land area: 188 sq km. Tourist arrivals by air: 649,893 (+1.4% on prev. yr.) Tourist arrivals by cruise ship: 297,480 (-6.0% on prev. yr.) Total Tourist Expenditures: $666.1 million USD. Tourism Budget: $212,700 USD. GDP at factor cost: $1,556.4 million USD. 1994 figures on whale watching: Nil. 1998 figures on whale watching: Nil. Whale-watching ports (current or potential): Limited information. Land-based viewing sites: Limited information. Whale-watching potential: Minimal. (Figures above are latest figures for 1997, except as noted.) Aruba is one of the powerhouses of Caribbean tourism, especially considering its modest size of 73 square miles (188 sq km), half the size of either Grenada, or St. Vincent & the Grenadines. Aruba has the seventh highest tourism expenditures in the Caribbean at $666 million USD. It received 649,900 tourist arrivals in 1997, along with 297,700 cruise ship passengers. The tourists come largely from North America and nearby Venezuela, and with its relatively high standard of living, it would be hard to find a place where tourism is embraced with such enthusiasm. Aruba is only 15 miles (24 km) north of the Venezuelan coast and is the farthest west of the Lesser Antilles group. It's a largely flat and dry island, and is located outside of the main 'hurricane belt', with few tropical storms in summer and early autumn. Aruba has good diving opportunities mixed in with all the superb beaches, the shopping, casinos, and developed resorts. In terms of cetaceans, Aruba's location off the Venezuelan coast would suggest Bryde's whales, bottlenose and various tropical dolphins such as Atlantic spotted dolphins. However, there is very little cetacean information on Aruba. Strandings have included Cuvier's beaked whales, but not to the extent as on Curaçao. There may well be cetacean opportunities within range of Aruba, but boat surveys would need to be done. Bonaire Population: 15,000. Land area: 288 sq km. Tourist arrivals by air: 62,776 (-3.5% on prev. yr.) Tourist arrivals by cruise ship: 22,028 (+47.5% on prev. yr.) Total Tourist Expenditures: $42.2 million USD. Tourism Budget: $1.7 million USD. GDP at factor cost: Not reported. 1994 figures on whale watching: Nil. 1998 figures on whale watching: 200 (not dedicated) and minimal total revenues. Whale-watching ports (current or potential): Kralendijk area. Land-based viewing sites: Limited information. Whale-watching potential: Moderate. (Figures above are latest figures for 1997, except as noted.) Bonaire, by contrast to Aruba, receives roughly 10% the number of visitors. It is one of the least tourist-developed islands in the Caribbean. With its fringing reefs located very close to shore and its exceptionally clear, clean water, full of marine life, Bonaire is consistently in the top 5 or 10 diving locations in the world. The Bonaire Marine Park effectively protects all the surrounding waters of Bonaire up to a depth of 200 feet (60 m), as well as an offshore cay called Klein Bonaire, with some 86 marked dive sites. Total size 43
Page 1 and 2: The Potential of Whale Watching in
Page 3 and 4: CONTENTS Executive Summary 4 Author
Page 5 and 6: • Caribbean whale watch operation
Page 7 and 8: INTRODUCTION Slightly larger in are
Page 9 and 10: Table 1. Checklist for starting, ex
Page 11 and 12: swim-with-dolphin excursions into B
Page 13 and 14: worthy plan for this area, or one t
Page 15 and 16: Bahamian Dolphin Guidelines These g
Page 17 and 18: longest coastline in the Caribbean.
Page 19 and 20: magnet for tourists and is a good a
Page 21 and 22: Acknowledgments: Baker 1998, Dean B
Page 23 and 24: the high value that dedicated whale
Page 25 and 26: the communication and general knowl
Page 27 and 28: Protección de los Mamíferos Marin
Page 29 and 30: 2.1 The capture, hurting, killing,
Page 31 and 32: 6. Jamaica Population: 2,553,400. L
Page 33 and 34: (Figures above are latest figures f
Page 35 and 36: Desecheo), located in the Mona Pass
Page 37 and 38: 9. US Virgin Islands (USA), includi
Page 39 and 40: system allows him to hear and recor
Page 41: water below it. The coat of arms is
Page 45 and 46: February through April, and occasio
Page 47 and 48: 15. Antigua and Barbuda (UK) Popula
Page 49 and 50: Guadeloupe, a French overseas depar
Page 51 and 52: 4) Ne pas passer plus de 30 minutes
Page 53 and 54: 1998, Jonathan Gordon and his colle
Page 55 and 56: 2. That it should be in the interes
Page 57 and 58: The following guidelines for whale
Page 59 and 60: February to April when the waters t
Page 61 and 62: tourism are distributed more evenly
Page 63 and 64: avoid any negative impacts on the p
Page 65 and 66: 20. St. Vincent and the Grenadines
Page 67 and 68: However, taking mothers and calves
Page 69 and 70: 22. Barbados Population: 265,350. L
Page 71 and 72: frequency of Bryde's whale sighting
Page 73 and 74: Caribbean, as in most other parts o
Page 75 and 76: IFAW. 1996b. Cetacean Field Researc

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