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From Butterflies to Buffaloes
Have you ever been on vacation with your family visiting another city or state or perhaps to a resort area such as Disney World? If so, then you were a tourist.
Have you ever been an eco-tourist? In order to answer, you must first understand what eco-tourism is. Eco-tourism is tourism with a primary focus on visiting natural areas to gain a greater understanding and appreciation. It is one our fastest growing types of tourism. Many people today live in urban or suburban areas yet still want to enjoy the outdoors and nature. Activities such as bird watching, hiking, and touring natural areas are types of eco-tourism. In this lesson, you will learn about some eco-tourism businesses and how these businesses earn a profit.
In this lesson, you will:
- Gain an understanding of what eco-tourism is.
- Examine several specific types of eco-tourism businesses and learn the markets for their businesses.
- Determine the profits of an eco-tourism business.
The International Eco-tourism Society has surveyed people in the United States about which nature-related activities they have participated in over the last year. Can you think of any nature-related activities you have done recently. Look at the list of nature related activities and see how many of them apply to you and your family?
As more people enjoy nature-related activities, businesses are being started that offer these and other related activities. Eco-tourism businesses, just like other businesses, must make a profit to stay in business. Let's look at a few of these eco-tourism businesses.
Corn prices in recent years have been so low that some farmers have not been able to make a profit raising corn. A new way to make a profit from corn farming is to create corn mazes and charge admission. Click on the link to read about some amazing corn mazes
. You can click on the map to read information about the mazes and see pictures of them. Does your state have any mazes listed? If there are none listed, discuss why you think there aren't any. Do you think people in your community would pay to visit a corn maze if one were available?
In addition to corn mazes, many farmers are now raising a completely new kind of crop - butterflies. There are now over 150 butterfly farms in the United States. Why are farmers raising butterflies? Find out by reading the article called "About the Butterfly Farm" . (NOTE: you need to click on "All About Butterfly Farming") What are some of the places or markets discussed in the article? In addition to raising butterflies for one or more of the markets above, many butterfly farmers give tours and charge admission. To read about a butterfly tour, click here . How much would it cost for your family to visit this butterfly farm?
Some former cattle ranchers are now raising buffaloes (or more precisely, American bison). Buffalo meat is growing in popularity
as it is considered by many people to be leaner and thus healthier to eat than meat from cattle. When people choose to buy goods that are similar to other goods but may be cheaper or better, this is known as substitute goods. When consumers buy buffalo meat instead of beef, they are buying a substitute good. In addition to raising buffaloes to sell the meat, many buffalo ranchers give tours on their ranches to tourists who are interested in seeing buffaloes in their natural habitats. To read about a typical buffalo tour, click here
. How much does a tour cost? In what season of the year would you expect to see the most business for buffalo tours at this ranch in Kansas?
Which of the three activities discussed (corn mazes, butterfly tours or buffalo tours) would you most like to do? Why?
Profit is a major business goal that can be combined with conservation of land.
Discuss why some ranchers and farmers are becoming eco-tourist entrepreneurs.
Are there any eco-tourism related businesses in your area? If not, can you think of any possibilities for developing profitable eco-tourism sites or activities.
Click here to complete this interactive fill-in-the-blank activity.
