provincial conservation authority, Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife concur, indicating that there is good potential for sensitive and responsible incorporation of indigenous knowledge into ecotourism.
As indigenous knowledge regarding invertebrates, such as cultural and medicinal use is usually very area specific, applicable information is likely to differ between ecotourism destinations. It is suggested that area specific indigenous knowledge should be perceived as an asset, as it contributes to an area's unique sense of place.
In terms of long-term biodiversity conservation, children are the conservationists of the future and thus it is crucial to explore various means of educating children regarding biodiversity and the need for conservation. The structured survey section of the research indicated a strong interest in invertebrate focused walks for children and it is recommended that this be seen as an opportunity to educate and raise awareness. The findings of the structured survey were further corroborated during the open-ended interviews, specifically the interview with the person responsible for the guided trails at the Botanical Gardens, Pietermaritzburg, who noted that the invertebrate focused walks were particularly popular with children and that parents were drawn to the educational aspect of the walks as they perceived this to be beneficial to their children.
Parents' awareness of, and appreciation for, invertebrates can also be raised through the education of their children.
Inclusion of information regarding invertebrates in ecotourism activities It is significant that not only is there a low percentage (20%) of guided walks that include a focus on invertebrates, but where this does occur, it is at the initiative of the guides who have a personal interest in and knowledge of invertebrates. Of the guides that do not include a focus on invertebrates, one of the main reasons cited for this was lack of knowledge of these animals.
It is held that this can be addressed by including information regarding invertebrates in guide training courses.
A significant theme noted by eight out of ten guides was that most tourists prioritise seeing the big five. The importance of this theme is that it illustrates the fact that large mammals are perceived to be more important than small animals, such as invertebrates. The findings of this research have corroborated those of the literature review: that there is a need to raise public
awareness regarding the importance of invertebrates. Itis held that this obstacle to invertebrate conservation can be addressed to some extent by education through ecotourism directed at stressing the ecological importance of invertebrates. Relating to this is the need to counteract the public's negative perceptions of invertebrates. A theme raised by five of the ten guides interviewed refers: discussions regarding invertebrates frequently focus on their perceived negative attributes. The significance of this is that it illustrates the problem that exists in terms of public perceptions of invertebrates. Again this obstacle to invertebrate conservation can be addressed through education. A pre-requisite to meeting this requirement is that of addressing the need to train guides regarding invertebrates. Five guides noted that they were not well informed regarding invertebrates. There is a need to address this and equip guides to challenge negative perceptions of invertebrates with factual information. For example they could illustrate that very few species are actually harmful to humans, while human activities are responsible for the current biodiversity crisis with invertebrate animals suffering the greatest losses.
The theme of there being a lack of time to include information regarding invertebrates is interesting in that it illustrates a lack of understanding of the abundance of invertebrate animals at most ecotourism sites. Itwould not take 'time' away from finding large mammals to include a few brief observations of invertebrates. It is held that it would give an extra dimension to a tour, and would be particularly useful for guides in instances when mammals are hard to find.
The results of the interviews and discussions with guides were confirmed during the participant observation where no information was given regarding invertebrates in any of the ecotourism activities participated in by the researcher. This is particularly significant in that the walks and game drives all took place in areas that are rich in easily observed invertebrate fauna. For example, during the walk and drive in Ndumu Game Reserve the guides completely overlooked the abundant invertebrates such as dragonflies, butterflies and spiders, which are easily observed, while the larger mammals were actually very difficult to see due to the thick vegetation. When asked regarding the invertebrate fauna the guides gave short responses that displayed a lack of knowledge and possibly a lack of interest in these animals. As has been discussed above, training of guides could address this issue.
The interviews with managers of protected areas highlighted a number of key themes, one being
that many managers are unaware that invertebrates have specific conservation needs. This is of concern in terms of invertebrate conservation and highlights the need for education regarding invertebrates and their conservation needs for those in management positions in conservation and ecotourism. For example, the owner-manager of a private nature reserve indicated that he did not realise that invertebrate populations may be adversely affected by the regular block burning as practised in his reserve. This parallels comments made by other conservation and ecotourism managers interviewed who noted that they assumed efforts to provide conservation for the larger mammals and certain vegetation types would automatically also provide for the conservation needs of invertebrates. The need to educate those in management is particularly urgent due to the far-reaching effects of ill informed conservation practices. The second and third key themes that emerged are inter-linked: managers were in agreement that in terms of conservation and overall biodiversity awareness it would be beneficial to include a focus on invertebrates, however, they were unsure how to go about doing so. They were also unsure how tourists would respond to this inclusion. This research has highlighted the fact that there is a gap in communication between tourists and managers of ecotourism destinations, most managers being fairly surprised to learn tourists had indicated an interest in being shown invertebrate fauna.
While the guides interviewed were all positive regarding the theoretical need to include information regarding invertebrates in ecotourism activities, there were differences in their perceptions regarding the extent to which they would actually be able to do so in practice. As recorded in the results, time constraints are a factor which guides perceive to be a limitation to invertebrate inclusion in ecotourism. This perception is challenged as it is held that what is included in ecotourism activities is to a large extent a combination of what presents itself in nature and the guides ability to interpret this. It is held that if guides receive training regarding some of the types of invertebrates in their areas they will be enabled to include information regarding invertebrates in their tours as and when the opportunity presents itself. A related theme that is challenged is that of the importance of seeing the big five. While both tourists and tour guides say the tourists' priority is to see the big five, walks that include a focus on invertebrates have proved very popular and those only focusing on mammals have received criticism. In addition to this is the fact that finding and observing the big five is unpredictable,
and that in most reserves this takes time. This time can be constructively and enjoyably used observing and learning about a whole range of smaller animals. As a number of tourists stated, observation of nature is an holistic experience and it is held that within the content of ecotourism, activities should reflect this. In addition, being able to comment on invertebrate activity would give a tour an extra dimension and enable guides to constructively make use of time between large mammal location.