Norasmil Ismail (2013) Evaluation of wildlife as a nature tourism product for conservation in Bundu Tuhan, Sabah. Masters thesis, Universiti Malaysia Sabah.
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Abstract
Nature tourism has been regarded as one of the most ideal conservation strategies under the contemporary context. Nature tourism proffers the application of biological diversity as a natural resource to enhance environmental awareness among nature tourists worldwide and the local community, as well as to generate revenue to propel even more fervent nature conservation efforts, all towards sustainable development. Nature tourism, especially based on wildlife (vertebrates) directly focuses conservation strategy onto highly sensitive and yet interesting organism groups. For this study, the potential of wildlife as a nature tourism product was measured through seven criteria: endemism, rarity, reliability of sightings, morphological attractiveness, behavioral enticement, safety, and linkage to local cultures. The research methods were divisible into three components: wildlife survey (direct and secondary inventory-based studies), human component survey (questionnaire survey, semi-structured interviews, and forum), and statistical analysis (one-way ANOVA) to determine the potential of wildlife as a nature tourism product for conservation in Bundu Tuhan, Sabah. Educational component was given emphasis in the study where forum with the local community for knowledge dissemination were conducted to prepare the local community for long-term self-regulated nature conservation in the area. Sampling periods for the research took place in July 2010 – May 2011. Collectively, 80 individuals of fishes from six species and two families, 657 individuals of amphibians from 37 species and six families, 41 individuals of reptiles from 19 species and seven families, 140 individuals of birds from 38 species and 23 families (observed only), and 155 individuals of mammals from 17 species and five families were recorded in Bundu Tuhan. The Shannon-Wiener index, H’ of fishes’ diversity in Bundu Tuhan was 0.9563, amphibians was 2.8928, reptiles was 2.2428, birds was 2.9843, and mammals was 1.6645. Degree of endemism (endemic to Sabah and Borneo) of fishes was 66.7%, amphibians was 73.0%, reptiles was 68.4%, birds was 5.3% (endemic to Borneo only), and mammals was 35.3%. Results from questionnaire survey among tourists (101 respondents), tourist guides (94 respondents), and local people (108 respondents) showed deep interest towards wildlife tourism, and firm belief that wildlife tourism could contribute to conservation. Semi-structured interviews with three respondents (local people) documented specific information about wildlife which was related to their cultures. Wildlife tourism has indeed fulfilled all the seven criteria evaluated and can be highlighted as a new nature tourism product in Sabah.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Masters) |
|---|---|
| Keyword: | Nature tourism, Wildlife, Vertebrates, Conservation, Bundu Tuhan, Sabah |
| Subjects: | Q Science > QH Natural history > QH1-278.5 Natural history (General) > QH1-(199.5) General Including nature conservation, geographical distribution |
| Department: | INSTITUTE > Institute for Tropical Biology and Conservation |
| Depositing User: | DG MASNIAH AHMAD - |
| Date Deposited: | 17 Jan 2025 14:20 |
| Last Modified: | 17 Jan 2025 14:20 |
| URI: | https://eprints.ums.edu.my/id/eprint/42635 |
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