Post by account_disabled on Mar 7, 2024 0:18:45 GMT -7
Taking selfies with animals is becoming a problem that puts the existence of dozens of species at risk.
Scientists say they are concerned about the way in which respect for wildlife is being lost and the activity of taking photos with animals is being normalized.
Every time a person takes a photo with a wild animal they may be disrupting their feeding and breeding habits and potentially even reducing birth rates, not to mention the physical and emotional stress caused to them.
Philip Seddon, director of the wildlife program at the University of Otago says the problem with selfies is that the images often appear without any context, so even if the message promotes conservation, that message is lost and all People see someone hugging a penguin, and they want to do it too.
And in several places like New Zealand, tourists have been observed chasing endangered animals and trying to take photos with them.
A report by the World Animal Protection organization Chile Mobile Number List on wildlife selfies showed a 292% increase in these types of images posted on Instagram between 2014 and 2017.
Of these, 40% of the images were classified as “bad selfies”, that is, those in which someone hugs, holds or acts inappropriately with a wild animal.
In Costa Rica, for example, authorities are asking tourists to only observe the animals and not touch them or carry them.
Even in that country they have already launched a campaign called StopAnimalSelfies that seeks to stop selfies with animals.
Pamela Castillo, vice minister of the Ministry of Environment and Energy of Costa Rica (MINAE) says that "our visitors should know the negative impact that selfies and photographs that show direct contact with wild animals have. “Our goal and responsibility, as global leaders on environmental issues, is to educate and motivate new global ambassadors committed to the protection of wildlife.”
In this same country, to reduce the number of visitors who take selfies with animals, the region proposed that instead of visitors taking photos with real animals, they do so with stuffed animals and also use the hashtag stopanimalselfies.
And the Costa Rican Tourism Institute says that beyond scaring the animals with selfies, they want to avoid the spread of diseases, "whether the animals are infected by people or vice versa."
In Australia, visitors to Maria Island, near Tasmania, are asked to sign pledges with the animals that “you will not chase them with your selfie stick, or get too close to the babies.” I will not surround you, nor try to lift you up. “I’ll make sure I don’t leave any trash or food.”
The initiative was taken because in that place several tourists were hugging and squeezing the marsupials.
“We are in the age of the selfie, and people want to take selfies in different places and with people and animals,” said John Fitzgerald, CEO of Tasmania Tourism.
“We ask people to respect the fact that they are wild animals.
Scientists say they are concerned about the way in which respect for wildlife is being lost and the activity of taking photos with animals is being normalized.
Every time a person takes a photo with a wild animal they may be disrupting their feeding and breeding habits and potentially even reducing birth rates, not to mention the physical and emotional stress caused to them.
Philip Seddon, director of the wildlife program at the University of Otago says the problem with selfies is that the images often appear without any context, so even if the message promotes conservation, that message is lost and all People see someone hugging a penguin, and they want to do it too.
And in several places like New Zealand, tourists have been observed chasing endangered animals and trying to take photos with them.
A report by the World Animal Protection organization Chile Mobile Number List on wildlife selfies showed a 292% increase in these types of images posted on Instagram between 2014 and 2017.
Of these, 40% of the images were classified as “bad selfies”, that is, those in which someone hugs, holds or acts inappropriately with a wild animal.
In Costa Rica, for example, authorities are asking tourists to only observe the animals and not touch them or carry them.
Even in that country they have already launched a campaign called StopAnimalSelfies that seeks to stop selfies with animals.
Pamela Castillo, vice minister of the Ministry of Environment and Energy of Costa Rica (MINAE) says that "our visitors should know the negative impact that selfies and photographs that show direct contact with wild animals have. “Our goal and responsibility, as global leaders on environmental issues, is to educate and motivate new global ambassadors committed to the protection of wildlife.”
In this same country, to reduce the number of visitors who take selfies with animals, the region proposed that instead of visitors taking photos with real animals, they do so with stuffed animals and also use the hashtag stopanimalselfies.
And the Costa Rican Tourism Institute says that beyond scaring the animals with selfies, they want to avoid the spread of diseases, "whether the animals are infected by people or vice versa."
In Australia, visitors to Maria Island, near Tasmania, are asked to sign pledges with the animals that “you will not chase them with your selfie stick, or get too close to the babies.” I will not surround you, nor try to lift you up. “I’ll make sure I don’t leave any trash or food.”
The initiative was taken because in that place several tourists were hugging and squeezing the marsupials.
“We are in the age of the selfie, and people want to take selfies in different places and with people and animals,” said John Fitzgerald, CEO of Tasmania Tourism.
“We ask people to respect the fact that they are wild animals.