Camel Genetic Resources Conservation through Tourism: A Key Sociocultural Approach of Camelback Leisure Riding
by
, , , and
Carlos Iglesias Pastrana
1
,
Francisco Javier Navas González
1,*
,
Elena Ciani
2
,
Sergio Nogales Baena
1 and
Juan Vicente Delgado Bermejo
1 1
Department of Genetics, Faculty of Veterinary Sciences, University of Córdoba, 14014 Córdoba, Spain
2
Department of Biosciences, Biotechnologies and Biopharmaceutics, Faculty of Veterinary Sciences, University of Bari ‘Aldo Moro’, 70121 Bari, Italy
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Animals 2020, 10(9), 1703; https://doi.org/10.3390/ani10091703
Submission received: 3 August 2020
/
Revised: 11 September 2020
/
Accepted: 17 September 2020
/
Published: 20 September 2020
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Data-Driven Decision Making in Animal Industries)
Simple Summary
Consumers’ environmental awareness have appeared on the scene and are bringing nature-based tourism demands to the rise. Related practices have led to camels being used as an income generator for tour companies and locals in exotic appealing destinations. The long-term viability of the respective breeds markedly depends on the fact that the principal income sources for camel breeders in some regions are tourist activities. The present research was intended to outline what are the social and cultural factors that can act as tourism attractions and satisfaction conditioning elements within this particular tourism enterprise. Staff performance, sociospatial motivating factors, diverse and humane close interaction, camel behavior and performance, sociotemporal context, and positive previous experience, are the principal dimensions affecting experiential consumption in camelback riding tours. The understanding of such experiential consumption enables tour operators to customize its camel saddlery offers based on the diverse patterns influencing the buying behavior and general satisfaction of the customers. In its broadest sense, responsible and sustainable camel-based tourism will create positive impacts for destination economies and provide long-term conservation opportunities both at a natural and cultural level.
Abstract
Camels are exotic elements, which can be comprised within adventure travel companies promoting ecotourism activities. Such recreations contribute to sustainable livelihoods for local communities and educational empowerment towards nature and its conservation. At present, some local camel breeds’ survival reduces to this animal-based leisure industry and its reliability to perform and promote customized services accurately. By conducting an on-site questionnaire to customers participating in camelback riding tours, we assessed the motivational factors affecting participation, satisfaction, and loyalty in this tourism segment that may have made it socially differentiated. The sixfold combination of staff performance, culture geography, diverse and humane close interaction, camel behavior and performance, sociotemporal context, and positive previous experience involves the elemental dimensions that explain customer satisfaction and return intention probability within this entertainment business. Customer knowledge is essential for stakeholders to build personalized riding experiences and align profits with environmental sustainability and biodiversity mainstream concerns into their everyday operations. In turn, domestic camel tourist rides could be managed as a viable path to nature conservation by helping endangered local breeds to avoid their functional devaluation and potential extinction.
