Whale watching tourism can disturb cetacean behavior, feeding, and communication when vessels approach too closely, but well-regulated operations can minimize impacts.
Whales repeatedly disturbed by vessel traffic show altered dive patterns, reduced feeding time, and increased stress hormone levels. Vessels that approach too closely force whales to alter their course, surface prematurely, or abandon feeding areas. Noise pollution from engines interferes with the vocalizations whales use for communication, navigation, and hunting. Cumulative disturbance from multiple vessels over a tourism season can have population-level effects on species already stressed by other human impacts.