Ecotourism’s mixed impact on mammals in Laos’ Nam Ha protected area
Camera traps reveal fewer medium‑to‑large mammals near popular trekking and kayaking routes in northern Laos.
Researchers used camera traps from 2013 to 2019 to examine how a community‑based ecotourism program influences mammal presence in northern Laos. The study, appearing in Global Ecology and Conservation, placed traps at 59 locations inside Nam Ha National Protected Area, covering both tourism hotspots and more isolated forest sections.
Across the landscape the cameras captured 45 species of medium to large mammals, among them 15 species classified as globally threatened. At sites adjacent to trekking trails and kayaking routes the average count was 4.58 species per site, and the report notes the figure was “almost twice…”.
“Hunting is a really integral part of the local culture, some of it legal, some of it illegal,” William Bleisch—lead author and former program director at the Hong Kong‑based China Exploration and Research Society—told Mongabay. He explained the team wanted to see if tourism might act as a “kind of refuge” where hunters either recognize the economic and social benefits of wildlife tourism or avoid hunting for fear of being reported by guides or tourists.
The findings suggest that while ecotourism may deter some hunting activity, it also appears to push certain mammals away from areas frequented by hikers and kayakers.
