Ban in Hawaii: Tourists are no longer allowed to swim with dolphins

• fromFranziska Kaindl

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Swimming with dolphins is a popular tourist activity in Hawaii. But now the US government has issued a ban on getting close to the marine mammals.

Swim with dolphins once – that is on the bucket list of many tourists. At least in Hawaii, this will soon no longer be possible: The US government is legally implementing a ban on contact between humans and marine mammals. From October 28, it will be forbidden to approach the spinner dolphins more than 50 meters near the coast, according to a statement from the National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA).

Hawaii: Swimming with Dolphins Banned – What is Still Possible for Tourists?

The new regulation does not only apply to Swimmers, boats or canoeists, but also for droneslocated within a two-nautical mile radius of the coast of the main Hawaiian Islands and designated waters between the islands of Lāna’i, Maui, and Kahoʻolawe. In this way, popular tourist activities such as dolphin watching or swimming with the marine mammals are to be prevented.

also read: Rare sight: Pink dolphins return due to the corona pandemic.

However, holidaymakers do not have to do without the dolphins completely: As long as boats and people do Distance of 50 meters According to NOAA Fisheries, dolphin and wildlife tours can still be done. However, if dolphins approach, no attempts may be made to interact with the animals. Instead, boats and people should move away from them. In order to prevent accidental encounters, NOAA Fisheries is also calling for rest times from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. in certain areas.

Interesting too: “People love dolphins too much”: New Zealand is now taking drastic measures against tourists.

Vacation in Hawaii: That is why tourists are no longer allowed to approach the dolphins

The ban is intended to protect the spinner dolphins in Hawaii. The animals are nocturnal and use the time of day to be around resting in coastal areas, raising their young and protecting themselves from predators. However, due to the observation and interaction with people, yours becomes Rest disturbedso that they are in a constant state of vigilance. This costs the marine mammals a lot of energy, which they normally have to spend on other important behaviors such as hunting. Actually, it’s after that Marine Mammal Protection Act already forbidden to molest the animals. So far, however, this has not been sufficient to prevent interaction between humans and dolphins. (fk)

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