The coast of Western Australia is vast – over 20,000 km – and has remained largely a ‘blank’ to be explored by tourists for some time. However recent years have seen an enormous growth in the number of Wildlife Boat Tours operating all over the state, many of them operating at full capacity during peak season.
Wildlife viewing is not limited to the occasional dolphin sighting on a tour.
The marine biodiversity advantage
The warm tropical waters of the Leeuwin Current flow down Western Australia’s coast while cold nutrient upwellings cross over to the west coast creating a Wildlife Tourist’s paradise for encounters with all types of marine wildlife that exist in these temperate waters of Australia.
Humpback whales visit Western Australia’s coast from June to early December. Bottlenose Dolphins can be seen on most wildlife tours throughout the year. Australian Sea Lions have established colonies along Australia’s West Coast and can be viewed on sea lion tours. Occasionally other species such as Orcas, Whale Sharks and even Blue Whales, the largest animals on Earth, can be seen in Western Australia’s waters, specifically in the Perth Canyon system where they come to feed on large amounts of krill and small fish.
For some species of wildlife there are reliable times of year to view them. For example, humpback whales travel along the west coast of Australia from June to December and can be found in bays up and down the state for the breeding season. Southern right whales are found in protected bays throughout Western Australia from May to October. So although the breeding season is the best time to view certain species of wildlife it is not the only time that tours can be booked.
Technology changes everything
There has been a great deal of change in the wildlife tours offered in Western Australia in recent years. The technology that is available has allowed for more in depth tours of the marine environment. Hydrophone systems can pick up whale songs kilometers away. Sonar can be used to chart the underwater topography of reefs as well as track schools of fish and other marine animals that may be feeding in an area. By using GPS tracking devices operators are able to monitor where animals have been spotted and then send their boats to that location. In many cases tourists are able to view wildlife in their natural environment from the comfort of stable vessels that have been specifically designed for wildlife viewing. Many of these boats have underwater viewing pods or glass-bottom sections allowing tourists to see the marine life up close.
As operators increasingly use GPS tracking systems to share in real time the places and times they have seen wildlife, the tourism can follow the best boats in the area to view that species of wildlife at the best time. Instead of competing with other operators for that chance sighting, tourists can view wildlife from the one best positioned to see it. Many of the tour boats now specifically designed for wildlife viewing have stable viewing platforms that prevent their tourists from getting seasick, and have engines that operate quietly enough so as not to scare the wildlife away. Some of the better tour boats even have viewing pods or glass bottom sections to allow tourists to view the wildlife underwater.
Conservation awareness drives demand
There is a growing number of travelers looking for nature-based experiences and to learn more about conservation during their holidays. There is no experience quite as powerful as watching huge whales and dolphins in their natural habitat and learning about the problems that they face.
A recent trend for wildlife boat tours in Western Australia is for tourists to participate in the research and gain insights to the work scientists and conservationists are doing to protect the marine wildlife that they can see on the tours. The boat and the skipper can be hired by research organizations, universities and conservation groups for scientists to travel to and from research sites and for data collection. The tourists on board can participate in the research, contribute to the scientists’ knowledge and gain an insight into the work that is being done to protect the wildlife that they can see on the tour. For example a humpback whale tour may be part of a study into the migration patterns of humpback whales along the Western Australian coast, or a bottle nose dolphin tour may be studying the behavior of the different pods of dolphins along the coast. Many of the tour operators are now partnering with research organizations, universities and conservation groups to provide tours that are also part of scientific studies into marine wildlife.
In addition to seeing wildlife up close, travelers can also gain valuable insight to the marine environment and the variety of colonies and habitats that they exist in. The tours can include an educational component and guides can talk about issues relating to food-chains and the many species of animals migration patterns and the challenges that face many of the species in terms of conservation and the impact of man on the marine environment.
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Economic factors make sense
There is also high value added to tourist’s experience and operators can make a good living from their wildlife tours without building much infrastructure, for example, one boat. Also most of these tours are environmentally friendly.
There are also economic reasons why there is tremendous scope for wildlife cruises. In contrast to fishing charters and harbor cruises, such experiences are able to command premium prices, and thus return greater value to the tourist dollar. Furthermore, in terms of return on investment, tours that allow for significant investment in quality boats and equipment, as well as in staff and in conservation projects, can deliver tremendous returns.
What makes Western Australia different
There are a number of key factors that make the coastal marine environment of Western Australia better than other parts of the world for the type of wildlife viewing that is being undertaken by wildlife boat tours. First, the continental shelf off the coast of Western Australia drops off very close to the shore, which allows for day trips to go and see a large number of deep water species. There are also a large number of Marine Parks and other protected areas throughout Western Australia, which are used to protect the fish stocks in order to maintain healthy fish populations for viewing by tourism.
Western Australia’s vast coastal areas offer a range of marine wildlife viewing opportunities. The State’s wildlife viewing experiences are enhanced by its continental shelf which drops off close to shore in many areas. This allows for a range of deep water species to be viewed on day trips. In addition, Western Australia has a number of marine parks and sanctuaries which offer protected areas for wildlife to thrive. Many of these areas are consistent with high numbers of wildlife viewing opportunities. In terms of scale, Western Australia’s coastline offers a range of areas for wildlife viewing from the tropical Kimberley region in the north to the temperate coast in the south. This allows for a variety of species to be viewed in different areas, and for operators to offer tours that specialize in particular species.
There are times of the year when many species of wildlife travel or even give birth. These ‘events’ are very popular with wildlife tour operators and travelers alike and they allow tour operators to promote trips of a fixed duration with the species of interest likely to be present at the times of year when they travel. For example, in Western Australia humpback whales migrate along the coastline between June and December and Australian sea lions give birth in the spring and early summer months in their various colonies around the State.
Demand for wildlife spotting excursions as an alternative tourist experience is growing rapidly as more people are exposed to this type of activity. Tours by boat through the marine environments of Western Australia offer a unique set of tourist experiences that are consistently delivered as yet on a relatively unique scale. This activity is likely to continue to grow as a number of global trends in relation to spending of leisure time and increased earnings by particular global populations are being serviced by the offering of wildlife boat tours through the formal tourist routes of Western Australia.
