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Costa Rica asks tourists not to take selfies with animals: what is the reason?

2019-11-13T03:07:58.492Z


There are many adorable animals, perfect for an amazing image on Instagram. But, in Costa Rica they launched the #StopAnimalSelfies campaign to avoid this kind of interaction with the species, pu…


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(CNN) - Costa Rica is known to be home to some of the most beautiful animals in the world such as sloths and ocelots.

But the tourist authority of the country wants visitors to come to observe the animals not to load them or touch them.

The Costa Rican Tourism Institute is behind the campaign called #StopAnimalSelfies. This is a response to the growing number of tourists visiting Costa Rica looking to take pictures with wild animals to post on Instagram.

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"Our visitors should know the negative impact of selfies and photographs that show direct contact with wild animals," Pamela Castillo, vice minister of the Ministry of Environment and Energy of Costa Rica (MINAE), told CNN.

"Our goal and responsibility, as world leaders in environmental issues, is to educate and motivate the new world ambassadors committed to wildlife protection," he added.

Behind the campaign

The Costa Rican Tourism Institute partnered with the department of Castillo in the initiative.

In addition to asking tourists to be respectful of wild animals when they visit Costa Rica, the two entities are also inviting visitors to pose with stuffed animals instead of real animals and to use the hashtag #stopanimalselfies and the phrase “do not mistreat animals wild for a selfie ”in his photos.

Beyond the fact that animals may be frightened, since many of them are not accustomed to human presence, interaction between species can lead to diseases, whether the animals are infected by people or vice versa.

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As an alternative, visitors who wish to interact with animals on their trips should do so through approved guides and experiences.

Approach, but not abuse

In the Sanctuary of Sloths, located in the province of Limón on the Atlantic coast of Costa Rica, the co-founder of the place Judy Avey-Arroyo educates tourists who come from all over the world to learn about the cute and furry animals.

During their visit, guests can observe, learn and interact with the lazy, but carrying animals is prohibited except for medical staff.

It is a behavior that can be found throughout Costa Rica.

Around 1.7 million people visit the country every year. Although the official language of the country is Spanish, the #StopAnimalSelfies campaign is in English because most tourists come from the United States and Canada.

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The country has driven ecotourism in a great way. In 2019, Costa Rica received the honor of Champions of the Earth, the greatest environmental recognition granted by the United Nations.

It's not just about the lazy

The phenomenon of people who use wild animals to take selfies is certainly not a problem that only affects Costa Rica.

Visitors to Maria Island, near Tasmania in Australia, are asked to sign commitments to animals that “they will not chase them with their selfie stick, nor will they get too close to babies. I will not surround you, nor will I try to raise you. I'll make sure I don't leave trash or food. ”

The promise, which Maria Island park rangers began distributing and publishing in January 2019, was due to the fact that too many tourists could not resist the charm of hugging and squeezing the pretty marsupials.

"We are in the age of the selfie, and people want to take selfies in different places and with people and animals," John Fitzgerald, CEO of Tasmania Tourism, told CNN Travel.

"We ask people to respect the fact that they are wild animals."

Wild animals Lazy Preservation Selfies

Source: cnnespanol

All news articles on 2019-11-13

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