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Since the 1960s, the tourism model has drawn visitors to sites around the globe for the observation of native species. The visitation of penguin reproduction sites in Patagonia (Yorio et al. 2001), visitation of albatross colonies in Taiaroa Head, New Zealand (Wilson & Tisdell 2000) and observation of sea turtles in the National Park of Mon Repos, Australia (Tisdell & Wilson 2001) are some examples. Research on tourism impacts to sea turtles usually focus on nesting beaches (Landry & Taggart 2010), thus more studies about impacts in feeding areas are needed. This study begins to fill that gap.

The Cananéia region (25°00’53’’S and 47°55’36”W) is in the Estuarine-Lagoon of Cananéia, and includes Iguape and Paranaguá, also known as Lagamar (24º40' to 25º05'S and 47º25' to 48º10'W). Located on the southern coast of the State of São Paulo, Lagamar was declared a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) in 1991 and enrolled as a World Natural Heritage site in 1999 (<<http://whc.unesco.org>) because it is one of the country’s most preserved coastal regions (Fig. 1). Cananéia is described as a feeding area for Chelonia mydas juveniles (Bondioli et al. 2005). However, there have not been many research studies that link the impacts of tourist activities on sea turtles with tourist knowledge about the species. This project will focus on understanding tourism in the region now, assess visitor knowledge about sea turtles and analyze the possible implications of tourism to sea turtles.

Figure 1. Study area of Cananéia, on the southern coast of the State of São Paulo, Brazil. Map credit: MAPTOOL (seaturtle.org).

Between April 2011 and April 2012, 200 tourists were interviewed in the county of Cananéia. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to evaluate tourist knowledge about sea turtles (Nogueira- Martins & Bógus 2004). During the interview, information about the socioeconomic profile of individuals was collected. Convenience samples were taken in different locations of the county (inns, hotels, car ferry, and tourist boats) in order to minimize bias in the sample (Filla & Monteiro-Filho 2009). Regarding the region’s touristic structure and the risks it could bring upon the sea turtles, a documentary analysis was conducted (Ludke & André, 1986) with information acquired from Governmental Organizations, tourism- related institutions and establishments and the Cananéia Research Institute (IPeC) NGO (an NGO that has acted in this region since 2003, conducting research on the biology and ecology of sea turtles).

Tourism in Cananéia can be divided into several categories: leisure and recreation, ecotourism, and scientific tourism. The largest numbers of respondents (70.5%) visit the region in search of leisure and recreation, accompanied by family and friends. Scientific tourists were the next largest group (27.5%). These individuals visited the region for contact with the local reality and for the study of local biodiversity. Fewer respondents (2%) stated that the trip’s goal was to see the natural, cultural, or historic beauty of the area or to understand local knowledge; this would place them in the ecotourism category (Brasil 1994). In such cases, respondents were traveling alone, not a general rule for the ecotourist category.

Ecotourism is seen as the best choice for development projects in Conservation Areas because it can promote environmental conservation with activities that stress the connection between mankind and nature (Brasil 2006; Mendonça & Neiman 2002). This type of tourism assumes that there are fewer negative impacts on the environment because an educational component is linked to tourist activities and therefore the activity affects the place visited to a lesser extent, mainly because groups are smaller in size (Joaquim 1997). Scientific tourism can be coupled with ecotourism because it provides technical and scientific information about local resources needed to develop sound ecotourism outfits (Mamede & Alho 2003).

On the question about how often the respondent had visited Cananéia, most of the respondents were first time visitors to Cananéia, which might be explain their ignorance about its attractions and turtles that live there. Thus, organizations and institutions related to tourism focus their advertising on fairs and other events, with the intention of increasing the region’s tourist activity. However, since the region does not have the infrastructure to meet high touristic demands, a substantial increase in tourism would bring about negative impacts to the environment and to the local population (Ruschmann, 2008). To avoid these problems, one must evaluate the type of tourism to be deployed, seeking tourism that is less harmful to the environment, such as ecotourism (Joaquim 1997). Knowledge of the tourist profile is fundamental for tourism management organizations, because it allows for monitoring the quality and kind of tourism practiced in the region.

We asked tourists if they liked turtles, and they could respond "yes," "no" or "indifferent" and could express some kind of comment about the animal. More than 70% of respondents claimed to like the animals, finding them to be "interesting," "beautiful" and "friendly." This response matches the use of the sea turtle image as a flagship species, often chosen to represent an environmental cause connecting the conservation of sea turtles with the conservation of the ecosystem upon which it depends (Vilas Boas & Dias 2010).

Most respondents (65%) did not know about the occurrence of these species in the region. Those who did know (35%) stated that they learned it from stories told by locals who were informed by IPeC, or even because they found carcasses on the beaches. The majority of responses from people who knew about the existence of the turtles were answers from tourists who visit the region frequently. Another way that individuals gained knowledge about sea turtles in Cananéia was through studies conducted in the area. This shows that research is an important method of increasing knowledge about the region and its biodiversity (Rosini & Ferreyros 2005).

Visitor knowledge about the occurrence of sea turtles in the region might improve tourism in Cananéia; this effect occurs globally in other places such as Brazil (Campbell 1999; Pegas & Stronza 2010; Tisdell & Wilson 2002). Structured and organized tourism may allow the opportunity to “utilize” sea turtles in a nondestructive manner by increasing the economic and social value of these animals. It would be helpful if scientific research could offer a tourism management plan that provides the opportunity for tourists to observe turtles in their natural habitat in a manner compatible with species conservation (Landry & Taggart 2010). One strategy would be to use the places that show a high abundance of sea turtles to practice turtle watching (Luchetta & Bondioli 2009).

Another possibility would be to take tourists to watch the activity of fishermen using cerco-fixo (fixed nets, a type of artisanal fishery in the region). These fisheries interact with turtles, but generally do not affect their survival. When sea turtle catches occur in these traps, the fishermen gather the fish but release the turtles back into the sea (Nagaoka et al. 2008). This is a great opportunity to educate visitors about the importance of human/sea turtle interactions occurring in a sustainable manner. This would allow the estuarine environment to be included in a typical tourism itinerary, with the sharing of cultural information about artisanal fishing and the biodiversity associated with the estuarine environment, which includes sea turtles. Thus, the tourist would be in contact with local culture and the community would be directly involved in the management of tourism activities (Araújo & Gelbcke 2008). These types of tours could include an educational component highlighting the occurrence of sea turtles in the region, describing the importance of these animals in the coastal environment, and discussing the threats they suffer, for instance, the marine pollution by synthetic debris.

According to information obtained from documents from the Agriculture, Fishery and Environment Department of Cananéia, seven tons of waste is produced daily. However, the amount of waste was not linked exclusively to the tourist season, thus any association with an increase in waste due to an increase in population during this time or to evaluate if the region has the capacity to meet this demand was not possible. The county’s waste collection happens primarily in the urban region; however, not all rural areas are serviced. Certain types of waste are not collected at all, aggravating the problem of improper waste disposal, which might contaminate river waters and the marine environment (Von Sperling 2005). The contamination of the coastal environment by the accumulation of waste is harmful to tourism, because it decreases the quality and beauty of the natural attractions (Nollkaemper 1994).

For sea turtles, debris such as plastics, artifacts and fishing line (Macedo et al. 2011) are harmful mainly due to being ingested, which can cause obstruction of the gastrointestinal tract or death by starvation, since this material can accumulate in the animal and prevent food from being properly digested, causing, in many cases, nutritional deficiency (Lutz 1990; Tourinho et al. 2008). Garbage ingestion can also cause an accumulation of gases that affect the ability of the animal to regulate its buoyancy (Moretti & Silva 2010), thus hampering its capacity to dive in search of food and leaving it susceptible to collisions with vessels and intentional capture, due to the longer time of exposure at the surface. Marine debris was diagnosed as a threat in the region due to its ingestion by juvenile turtles that use Cananéia as a feeding ground, with possible negative impacts on population growth (Bezerra & Bondioli 2011). Therefore, tourism activities must be linked to environmental education in order to inform tourists about the place they are visiting, the biodiversity in the region and the problems that carelessness with trash can generate for turtles and the environment.

Thus, because Cananéia represents an important coastal ecosystem for conservation (UNESCO 2001) and it is experiencing increasing touristic demands it is important to balance tourism with other needs in the region. The activities that should be encouraged are those that fall under ecotourism and scientific tourism categories, generating both social and environmental benefits, such as turtle watching and artisanal fishery visitation. This work might help guide decision-making about tourism in the region, by taking into account not only the conservation of sea turtles, but also improvements in the local community and region.

Acknowledgments. The research was conducted with the proper permits and we thank IPeC, the workers of the Lagamar Schooners hotels and inns, the County Tourism Council and the departments of Tourism and Leisure and Agriculture, Fishery and Environment of the Stanza of Cananéia City Hall Office.

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