Evolução na continuidade: birdwatching como fator de valorização da natureza na Madeira

Abstract

An increasing number of destinations overdependent on the nature factor are increasingly challenged by the climate change issue, namely through increased erosion and loss of habitat, which has attracted the development of the so-called ´last chance tourism´. In other instances, tradition is perpetuated based on well consolidated, over the past long decades, and high-demand activities and experience. New experiences and alternatives resources are therefore neglected. While a large number of indigenous plants and bird species are found in the Madeira Natural Park area (PNM), that covers 70% of the territory of Madeira Island, traditional activities such walking along the levadas are still predominant. This study aims to compute the market size of the birdwatching as a type specialist market niche, and to identify the motivations igniting birder´s interest in Madeira. The ultimate goal is to offer guidance on how to redefine the image of the destination, without both losing sight of the tradition, or being afraid of staging complex and attractive experiences aiming at a sophisticated audience. This study shows that interest in birdwatching, is rather unexpressive, but not meaningless to a sizeable number of visitors. A dimension of the experience linked to birdwatching highlights aspects such as wellness and inner peace, and the enjoyment of nature in a relaxed and calm way. As the Island´s image abroad has extoled such elements so abundantly, the key issue is to reconfigure, and not to restart the image conveyed abroad. The results suggest that birdwatching results in higher levels of satisfaction, which prompted us to put forward several policy recommendations.