Experts studying how tourism affects wild gibbons say visitors should wear PPE masks and have health checks before visiting them.
While tourism to wild gibbon populations halted with the first COVID-19 lockdowns, tour operators in Cambodia and China are gearing up to resume visits.
The recommendations build on world-first research on wild gibbon populations in Cambodia and China, which shows the apes significantly alter their behaviour, to their own detriment when tourists are present.
Instead of resting and socialising, gibbons spent more time on the look-out for danger and displayed stress and anxiety behaviours when tourist groups followed them.
Continue reading at Australian National University.
Image via Peter Williams.