1. Impact of Ecotourism on Harbor seal (Phoca vitulina) behavior in Pedersen Lake, Kenai Fjords National Park Brenda Norcross Institute for Marine Science University of Alaska, Fairbanks Anne Hoover-Miller Alaska SeaLife Center Seward, Alaska Caroline Jezierski School of Fisheries and Ocean Science University of Alaska, Fairbanks

2. Ecotourism Largest & fastest growing industry Natural & cultural based “No-take” concept Low impact Increased pressure on natural places

3. Study Area Glacial lake in Kenai Fjords National Park Access via a tidally influenced stream

4. Harbor Seals Population declined 80% in the past 25 years Increased reliance on glacial ice in Pedersen Lake

5. Disturbance Humans can alter animal behavior Impact of sea kayak tourism on harbor seal behavior Past studies indicate non-motorized vessels can have greater impact

6. Objectives 1.Determine if the frequency of harbor seals abandoning ice increases in human presence 2.Develop paddling recommendations 3.Determine if education helps minimize disturbance Add photo

7. Data Collection 2004- archive tapes from remotely operated cameras 2005- 10 days in field, recording via cameras 2006- 28 days in field, recording via cameras

8. HS Behavior Monitoring Field & remote observation protocol Select focal group Identify seals by location on iceberg 1 2 3 4 5 6 Record behavior every 10 sec for 20 min Photo: OASLC- HS Fact Sheet

9. Behaviors Resting (0) Alert (1) Abandoning (2) Out of view (0) Break in observations (0) Grooming (0) Data sheet example

10. Kayak interactions

11. Preliminary Results

12. Impact of Tide The frequency of seals abandoning ice does not vary significantly with tide level. (p<0.70) 2006 Data Observations collected at all tide stages Kayak & walker observations concentrated during high tide

13. Impact of Time of Day 2006 data The frequency of seals abandoning the ice does not vary significantly with time of day. (p < 0.30) Observations collected during all times of day Kayak & walker observations concentrated during the afternoon

14. Comparisons Among Years Overall % of seals abandoning the ice varies significantly with years. (p < 0.001) N=335N=1094N=1048

15. N=263N=43N=29N=673N=382N=39N=563N=372N=113 significant for all years (p 0.001) For ALL years, the presence of sea kayakers and walkers has a significant effect on the frequency of harbor seals abandoning the ice.

16. Education Pre-season local guide training Presented results from summer 2005 Offered paddling recommendations

17. Paddling Recommendations Choose a path with the least number of seals hauled out Observe seal behavior Maintain distance Place iceberg between you and seals

18. Education Results The frequency of seals abandoning the ice varies significantly whether a trip is guided or not (p<0.001) The frequency of seals abandoning the ice varies significantly with mitigation training (p<0.001) The frequency of seals abandoning the ice does NOT vary significantly when humans are absent and when guides with mitigation training are present (p<0.5)

19. Summary YES, humans have an impact on harbor seal behavior BUT, education can be effective in minimizing this disturbance

20. Acknowledgments Funding sources: OASLC (2005 +) EVOS (2005 +) Francis Fay Memorial Scholarship (2005-2007) Ken Turner Memorial Scholarship (2006-2007) UAF SFOS TA (2004-2005) Interns: Kristi Heffron Morgan Sternberg Rebecca Pearce Field Volunteer: Sarah Schoen Jacob Knight Transport to field site: Greg Spencer Justin Jenniges Field Prep: National Park Service (NPS) Peter Armato- Director OASLC Jim Pfeiffenberger- Education OASLC Jim Ireland- Head L.E. Ranger Shelley Hall & Meg Hahr- permits Mike Tetreau- bear safety Ian Martin- bear safety CJ Rea- Education Specialist SeeMore Wilderness Systems staff Kayak info & support: Dave and Wendy Kayak Adventures Worldwide Graduate Committee: Brenda Norcross- UAF Anne Hoover-Miller- ASLC Lori Polasek- UAF/ASLC Kate Wynne- UAF MAP agent Field equipment: NPS/OASLC SSL project HS project Stats help: Dan Hennen Protocol Support: Brendan Kelly- UAS Beth Matthews- UAS Tom Smith- USGS Laura Boren