DOC says dolphins come first as swimming ban hits Bay of Islands tour operators

Wednesday, 2 October 2019

Surfers are often joined by bottlenose dolphins at Waipu, photographer Brian Came said.

Tourist operators in the Bay of Islands say business is suffering after new rules mean they can no longer offer swimming with bottlenose dolphins.

But the Department of Conservation said the measures were introduced after dolphin numbers dramatically dropped, and it is not ruling out further restrictions.

The new rules came into effect on July 1, coinciding with new three-year permits given to all commercial boats.

Other restrictions include limiting interaction time with bottlenose dolphins to 20 minutes per trip, restricting sailings to either mornings or afternoons, and closing off areas at Tapeka Point near Russell and Roberton Island/Motuarohia.

Tourist still get plenty of joy out of seeing dolphins in the Bay of Islands, according to Explore Bay of Islands managing director William Goodfellow.

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Thousands of tourists used to swim with the dolphins each year, said William Goodfellow, the managing director of Explore Bay of Islands.

The end of the popular activity has meant a reduction in tourists, leading to fewer sailings by Explore Group, he said.

Goodfellow said the decision was disappointing and he was not sure if it was based on sound evidence.

'We were totally in support of the approach that their welfare needs to be a top priority but we don't feel that swimming was the biggest issue,' he said.

Swimming with bottlenose dolphins is still allowed in other parts of the country, such as the Marborough Sounds.

While there were just five commercial operators in the Bay of Islands, Goodfellow said there were thousands of pleasure craft interacting with the dolphins each year.

He supported a marine mammal sanctuary being investigated by DOC, which would put commercial and private boats on the same footing.

Goodfellow also questioned why, if swimming with bottlenose dolphins was so detrimental to the species, it was allowed in other parts of the country.

Dr Cat Peters from the Department of Conservation says bottlenose dolphins are being disturbed around the Bay of Islands, resulting in alarmingly high calf deaths.

'If we're relying on research that says swimming with dolphins shouldn't occur in the Bay of Islands, it's difficult to say why it shouldn't be [banned] anywhere else in the country.'

But the research for the area was very clear, said Dr Cat Peters, DOC's Bay of Islands senior ranger marine.

The bottlenose dolphin numbers frequently visiting the area had dropped 66 per cent since 1999, to a core group of only 19 dolphins, she said.

'The decline is not necessarily that the mammals are dying but they're choosing not to be in the area.'

The shift had led to the highest calf death rate in the world, Peters said.

'The Bay of Islands is a really important area for raising their young and if they're not coming here, we're seeing mortality in calves - over 75 per cent are not making it to independence.'

Both the Department of Conservation and tourist operators like Explore Group want to save bottlenose dolphins in the Bay of Islands.

Peters agreed recreational boaties were also part of the problem, with her PhD research showing pleasure crafts were responsible for a third of all interactions with dolphins in the Bay of Islands.

DOC would continue to run a patrol in the bay to educate recreational boaties, with more than 3500 boats being spoken to in the month after Christmas this year.

The three key rules for interacting with marine mammals were for speeds to be below 10 knots, no swimming with pods with calves and no more than three boats within 300 metres.

A marine mammal sanctuary - the first of its kind in New Zealand - was also being investigated by DOC, with input from hapū and commercial operators, Peters said.

The proposal was still in its early stages and the community would be extensively consulted if the plan got past the first stage, she said.

SEEING DOLPHINS STILL A THRILL

While Goodfellow was disappointed with the swimming ban, he said Explore would adapt to the new rules.

No tourist operators in the Bay of Islands were advertising swimming with dolphins any more, although Fullers GreatSights said it was still negotiating its permit with DOC.

Explore changed its experience to offer a chance to see bottlenose dolphins as well as other mammals, such as common dolphins.

Seeing dolphins was still a huge thrill to tourists, Goodfellow said.

Tourists also got a chance to snorkel and find out about ecological restoration programme Project Island Song.

'The environmental component of any tourist experience now is very important, certainly to us.'