wild species watching

Wild species watching is defined as a non-extractive practice where humans observe, and in some cases interact, with wild species in their natural environment in a way that does not involve the harvest or removal of any part of the organism. Wild species watching activities vary greatly in the level of wild species involvement, ranging from photographing animals from afar to more invasive practices of habituating, feeding and touching animals (UNEP/CMS, 2006, p. 2006). Wild species watching also is an economically important segment of nature-based tourism.