Dolphin Watching and Compliance to Guidelines Affect Spinner Dolphins’ (Stenella longirostris) Behaviour in Reunion Island

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Whale and dolphin watching have expanded worldwide, with their impacts on cetaceans over the short and long terms being widely reported. In Reunion Island, the activity has rapidly developed, notably around a resident spinner dolphin population, which can be seen year-round. Focal follows revealed that the dolphins are less likely to begin socialising or resting and more likely to remain travelling or milling in the presence of dolphin-watching vessels. The dolphins’ avoidance reactions increased when tourist vessels were numerous or in non-compliance with the regulations. The cumulative effect of such behavioural responses likely impacts the dolphins at the population level, highlighting the need for enforcing adaptive and efficient dolphin-watching management measures to ensure the welfare and preservation of the resident spinner dolphins of Reunion Island. ABSTRACT: Marine wildlife tourism has rapidly developed in Reunion Island, due to a large demand for interactions with a resident population of spinner dolphins (Stenella longirostris). The presence of dolphin-watching vessels close to dolphin groups can cause short-term impacts on their behaviour; cumulative incidences likely result in deleterious long-term impacts on the population. Using scan sampling, we collected behavioural data on spinner dolphins to evaluate the short-term effects of dolphin watching on their behaviour. The dolphins were less likely to begin socialising or diving while travelling and more likely to stay travelling and milling in the presence of vessels. Additionally, activity budgets for resting and socialising decreased simultaneously with increased travelling and milling. Avoidance responses significantly increased with an increase in the number of vessels and non-compliance with the local dolphin-watching guidelines. These behavioural responses are likely to have energetic costs for the dolphins, which may lead to decreased survival and reproductive success at individual and population levels. More restrictive regulations, increased surveillance and animal-based measures are key tools to adapt the conservation efforts in Reunion Island. Further studies on the island’s resident dolphin populations are necessary to ensure the continuity of dolphin-watching activities in a sustainable manner.