The following assignment stresses the problems faced in the visitor and crowd behavior management. Discussions on the problems and their solutions have been highlighted. Importance has been given to save the wildlife and other animals as well as their natural habitats from being spoiled by a large mass of tourists visiting during tours.
The visitor and crowd behavior at public places become unmanageable at times leading to serious threats and injuries. The danger to wildlife and its sustainability is a big question to tackle with. The issues faced in the problem can be solved by designing various strategies and use of good marketing tools. The danger in crocodile tours can be solved by reducing the number of tourists visiting and taking part in dangerous activities. The stakeholders feel that there is an adequate solution to this, but with the promotion of good advertisements, laws, and practices, we could easily reduce the number of tours thereby decreasing the risk of dangerous activities (Benton, 2011).
One of the major problems faced is the core environmental issue which is disturbing the natural habitat of crocodiles. Crocodiles are among the endangered animals and it’s our responsibility to protect them as they have many prehistoric links with the past. If they become extinct, we will not get a second chance to keep their species protected. As the people visiting their habitats are spoiling their breathable area, it would be detrimental for the species to continue. Playing the role of predators and preys, crocodiles are considered to maintain the health of many aquatic environments. Another serious issue is feeding wildlife while people are on tours. It is known that feeding is taken as a tool to attract people on such tours. The department of environmental and Heritage actions states that it is illegal to feed animals when you are on wildlife tours. People throw food at the animals for fun and enjoyment but they do not realize the consequences behind it. Throwing food at the animals while boating or walking around is a potential crime and can lead to heavy fines. People love to be adventurous and therefore take this tour as a hobby and practice illegal activities. This disturbance destroys their natural habitat making it difficult for the animals to live (Calver & Page, 2013).
They feel a sense of danger over time. Organizing such tours during holidays/vacation brings a lot of revenue to a particular country but in return harms the wildlife, especially crocodiles. So, we can analyze that there are environmental issues which are affecting the crocodiles. Strict actions need to be taken and serious laws to be imposed by the government, only then the identity of crocodiles will be intact (Cheng, Du & Ma, 2014).
Apart from the environmental issues, there are various other issues which are posing a threat to the wildlife on a longer basis. Not only it disturbs their natural habitat, but it also puts the life of the tourists in danger. Apart from such issues, the stakeholders have encountered various other problems too. There are long- term environmental issues that may occur. It is a well-known fact that feeding animals will cause more harm than good, and the tourists are well aware of this, but still, they risk their lives. Cjosk?ns & Lektauers, 2017).
Wild animals can, therefore, be dangerous to tourists. For example, if the crocodiles are being fed by the tourists, they will try to come out to collect thus giving competition to the other animals of the surroundings. People try to come out of their boats for feeding the animals, thus increasing the chances of being hurt by them, making activities and their habitats totally unsafe, both for animals and for the tourists (Cole & Hall, 2009).
The main stakeholders identified in this issue are the tourists, the local and state governments, the tour operators and the environment. The government is facing an ongoing issue that the tour operators in spite of aware of the dangers are allowing people to feed the animals when they are on their tours. It has already been mentioned earlier that feeding the wildlife can be dangerous to the people and animals like crocodiles are always on handouts for their diet. Also, boating tours, cause a lot of water pollution as people throw litter and other disposables in the water (D’Antonio & Monz, 2016).
In this way, the environment is also affected. If we see the other side of the coin, the existence of such tours will attract future tourists too. This will keep bringing a lot of revenue thus growing the economy of the country. They enjoy the excursions, thus increasing a lot of activities at that place. But, it is not necessary that such tours would always be positive (East, Osborne, Kemp & Woodfine, 2017).
The operators organizing the tours do not know how the day would go. The tourists might experience negative things while on their tours, like minor injuries caused etc. Another issue faced is the disagreement of the people to feed food to the wild animals. In spite of being aware of the dangers, they tend to put their lives in risks. Also, tour operators which are the major stakeholders feel that such tours sight for a competition with other tours and they have a competitive advantage over prices, attractive offers etc (Kountouriotis, Thomopoulos & Papelis, 2014).
They do not abide by the law of not feeding the crocodiles. This can be alarming because not abiding by the laws may put their lives as well as the lives of the tourists in danger. In addition to this, huge fines will be levied on the operators. Also, the natural habitat of the crocodiles will no longer be healthy and safe for them (Moore & Taplin, 2014).
The environment is a major stakeholder under which everything else is operating. The activities of other stakeholders will have a huge impact on the environment and wrong steps might make the issue more glaring. The Environment cannot speak for himself but will suffer the largest impact if precautionary measures are not taken (Punel, Ermagun & Stathopoulos, 2018).
The government is another stakeholder can impose laws and promotional campaigns. The tourists though contribute to the economy by participating in such activities and tours, but their behavior towards wildlife might put them in danger and also destroy and pollute their habitat (Quadros, Goulart, Passos, Vecci & Young, 2014).
The stakeholders have also highlighted various other problems in this issue. The most important problem which is to be taken into serious consideration is the prevention of water from being littered because people are not realizing the long- term consequences related to it. Boating tours are encouraging a lot of pollutants to get into the water and destroying the habitat for crocodiles and other aquatic animals. In their fun and enjoyment, they throw garbage inside the water posing a serious threat. While such tours take place, people should be guided and instructed to clean themselves and not to carry any eatables along with them (Vassiliadis, Priporas & Andronikidis, 2013).
They should also encourage others to do the same. The tour operators are generating a lot of income from such tours, so they should try to follow the rules set for protecting wildlife. The placement of these tours and the activities that form a part of it will decide the future of the habitat of crocodiles, whether they will survive or will be in danger.
There are various problems highlighted in this issue which need to be rectified at the right time before it is too late. There are various techniques and methods which can help us solve these problems. The most important factor is customer feedback. A customer plays a primary role in any business and activity, and he is the only one from which one can gather authentic information. If the customer is satisfied, he will give good feedback thus enhancing your business, on the other hand, if it is bad; it means there is a lot of improvement needed in the required area. The service quality in the tourism industry also plays a major role as everything depends on it. It has to be improvised and made impressive so that it satisfies the customer and brings back good feedback (Bode & Codling, 2013).
It is still to find which services are good for the tourism industry. In case of our problem, it is difficult to know what the tourists feel when they go for such boating tours. Their experiences have to be captured for future improvements. There are various ways of extracting feedbacks from the customer. The tourist guide, who goes with the tourist on the boating tours, can make small videos of the people explaining their experiences and what could be the scope of improvement. Also, when the tour is over, the tourists can fill a feedback form either online or offline. Such feedbacks will be of great help and help the tour operators to make the required changes and improve their tour quality (Bush & Balven, 2018).
This information can protect the crocodiles from losing their identities too. In addition to this, the local and state governments are also required to take necessary actions. They should implement advertising strategies related to the issue. The strategies should be designed to meet a long- term effect. The advertisements can be graphic, informative and educational which can explain the long- term effect on crocodiles and their environment.
Pamphlets and brochures can be handed over to the tourist who explains the dos and don’ts of the tour. In respect to this, strict observation should be kept on the tourists that they do not break the laws. Big boards should be used informing people about the harmful effects and endangering acts of the animals. Television as an advertisement tool can also be used to make the people aware of the effects of water pollution in the animal prone area. Usage of more paper for campaigns and ads will lead to the forceful cutting of trees, thus encouraging deforestation, leading to an environment issue again. As we know, people are using smartphones; apps for protecting wildlife and their environment can be launched (Eickhoff & Muntermann, 2016).
Such an app will give all details related to the boating tour, it will also highlight the activities which are not to be done during the tour. Apart from this, it will make the people aware of the consequences of the activities that they do for their fun and enjoyment. Laws should be made to protect wildlife. No eatables and polythene bags should be allowed. This will protect the area from being littered. For protecting the crocodiles and other animals, and keep our environment healthy, not only the government but everyone will have to come hand in hand to keep our natural entities safe. The sustainability of the environment and the wildlife is clearly linked to the concepts of Middleton’s 10 R’s (Lichtenfeld & Bar-Hai, 2011).
All the concepts relate to the tourism industry, but the re-engineer theory is one of the concepts that have a close relationship with the present issue. Re-engineering is basically the redesigning and restructuring of the behavior through personal intervention. An example of re-engineering can be of a sort that the tourists enjoy the wildlife tours, but shouldn’t harm them and their environment. They should observe them from a distance. Let them not be disturbed and may live life peacefully. This applies not only to the tourists but also to tourist guides (Lichtenfeld & Bar-Hai, 2011).
We have already mentioned earlier, that feeding of animals can be dangerous as it spoils their feeding habits and can provide damage to the tourists and locals. It will be harmful to the environment also as more of the crowd approaching in the wildlife areas invites lots of litter which pollutes the water making it infectious. In 2014, there was a fatal attack on the Adelaide River, where numerous boating tours are functional. If the number of tours is decreased on the Adelaide River, it will eventually decrease the frequency of attacks occurring there (Macdonald, 2016).
Through adequate research and proposed solutions for this issue, it is clear that the problem requires the right people who can responsibly solve this issue. Our primary motive is to protect wildlife and their environment from destroying. There is no clear problem highlighted in this issue, but we know that the core problems are related to feeding of crocodiles and the harm that the tourists can cause with their discerning activities when they are on boating tours. Getting feedback forms filled by the tourists, promoting campaigns and ads on the related issue will increase awareness among the people. These are the tools which can effectively work to solve this problem. But this is not sufficient enough. The stakeholders who are involved in this issue have to take the sole responsibility of protecting crocodiles and their environment. They can probably find a solution with the use of their resources and knowledge (Pathan, Hamadi & Michaelis, 2014).
More and more of campaigns must be promoted to make the people aware of the harmful effects caused due to the feeding of wild animals. The local and state government should run these campaigns under their supervision so that the right information reaches to the tourists. Some tour operators us boating tours as a marketing tool to attract more tourists. This should be stopped and even if it continues, people should follow the rules and regulations. None of the wild animals, especially the crocodiles should be fed unattended. They should not be fed litter or garbage too. Also, the average number of tourists visiting the animals at one point of time must be limited. The ticket prices can be increased as we have a demand for that, and the tour operators can get benefits from it. Number of tourists going at the same time will lead to chaos. The tour must be hassle free and peaceful for the tourists as well as for the animals (Zhao, Cai & Turner, 2017).
There are various techniques and methods that can be used to solve this problem and the consequences of not solving the issue can also be highlighted. Many methods have already been discussed. The campaigning of the tour related issues by the local and state government can serve as an eye-opener for the tourists. Many ads on TV will give wide coverage to this problem. More of the advertisements will publicize the issue and people will become more active towards solving it. Buffering ads on channels like YouTube can also be given to create more awareness among people. Pamphlets and brochures can be distributed from time to time showing the bad effects of the activities done by the tourists. People will be more aware of the consequences and majority of people will try not to disturb the animals and their habitats with their wrong activities. Feeding of the animals by the tourists should be stopped and the harm they cause to other animals in competition while feeding should be highlighted. A web page can be prepared which displays the crocodile tour and its list of do’s and don’ts. On the same web page, a columns or link should be developed where the tourists can leave their suggestions to improve and solve this issue. They can also leave their feedbacks of the tour, their experiences and the behavior of the tour operators with the tourists as well as the wild animals. Those ideas or suggestions can be taken for further improvement. This might solve this issue to a great extent. Graphic representations or slides can be prepared to cite examples about how crocodiles and another animals harm each other when they are fed. For example, an ad on the TV which shows the tourist feeding the crocodiles and the competition that takes place while competing for food can be shown. This will spread a message as to how dangerous it will be to feed the crocodiles. Its consequence on a long-term basis can be displayed. Another image in the form of an ad can be shown where the tourists keep feeding the wildlife and the results thereafter. It can’t be measured how much impact it will create on the tourists, but a change will start taking place if such awareness programs continue (Kamp, 2011).
The following picture shows the consequence of using polythene bags and their effects on animals. The material of polythene bags contains poisonous substances which when mixed with water makes it toxic and harmful for the animals to consume.
The second option/method is to prevent the natural habitats of the animals from being littered. The tour operators gain a lot of money from this business, but this is only possible if the animals remain alive. If the habitats are continuously littered with garbage and disposables, it will affect the surroundings putting the animals in a state of threat. Throwing litter in the water causes a lot of water pollution which is harmful for the animals. Eatables of any kind should not be allowed inside the boating tour. Assistance should be given in the prevention of littering on boating tours. Small boats can be used so that the boating tour could be confined to a small space. Obviously, if the boats are small, they will carry lesser number of tourists and amount of littering caused will be less. To overcome this problem, less number of tourists must be allowed to visit the boating tour at a specific time. Penalties can be levied from the tourists if they spoil the environment throw litter in the water. Proper dustbins should be maintained on the boat itself for the smooth disposal of garbage. The tourists must be instructed to throw the garbage in the dustbins rather than in water or in surroundings. Various websites like trip advisor show the reviews of the people when they went in mass on a whale tour and the amount of litter they had spread. The consequences can’t be even imagined. There should be a pre-booking system approx. 48 hrs. Before the tour, this will allow only those tourists who have got the bookings done. A quota system can be introduced which will limit the number of tourists visitng the boating tour at one point of time. This will reduce the number of tourists going for a tour at one time (Jones & Spiers, 2018).
The following picture shows the pollution level of water which happens due to throwing of the litter in the water. This is a very common issue faced by the animals, but needs to be taken strict action because such water, when consumed by the animals will make them sick as toxic substances will penetrate the body, and eventually, they will die, putting an end to the species too. Such an issue happened in the Adelaide River, where the water was polluted to a larger extent and the aquatic animals as well as other animals began to suffer. This problem was solved by introducing the quota system in which limited number of people went on the boating tour preventing the water from being further polluted.
In order to maintain a healthy environment for wildlife, it is the responsibility of everyone to come and work together. This will keep the species intact and their habitats will also remain healthy. Both the options suggested above will work for the betterment of crocodiles. The option 1 which suggests campaigning and advertisements for this issue will work more efficiently. People absorb more from practicality rather than reading. If they see ads and participate in the campaigns, it will create awareness and shall abide by the laws. For the tour operators, it is merely a business, and they will continue to disobey the laws because they have to draw more revenue out of it. But it’s our sole responsibility to save our crocodiles from such threats and give them a peaceful life. If the government gets strict and firm about following the rules made for this issue, this problem can be solved to a greater extent.
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