Table 1. Conservation and welfare scores, accessibility (number of visitors per annum and number of animals held) and tourist dissatisfaction score (percentage of reviews on TripAdvisor that were negative for WTAs within a given type) for 24 representative WTA types, selected across five categories of WTA.
See Fig 1A and 1B, and S3A Table–S3X Table and S4A Table–S4X Table for score derivation and supporting references, respectively.
| WTA type | Conservation score | Welfare score | Tourist dissatisfaction score (% negative reviews) | Number of visitors annually | Number of animals in the attraction |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Captive interactions | |||||
| Bear parks (Japan only) | -1 | -3 | 2.8 (4.0, n = 2) | 100,000–500,000 | 100–1000 |
| Dolphin interactions (captive) | -1 | -2 | 3.5 (7.6, n = 46) | >500,000 | 1000–10,000 |
| Elephant parks / treks | -2 | -2 | 12.8 (17.6, n = 55) | >500,000 | 10,000–100,000 |
| Tiger interactions | -1 | -3 | 16.4 (11.9, n = 3) | 100,000–500,000 | 100–1,000 |
| Lion encounters | +1 | -1 | 7.0 (6.8, n = 9) | 100,000–500,000 | 1,000–10,000 |
| Sanctuary attractions | |||||
| Bear sanctuary | +1 | +2 | 0.0 (0.0, n = 2) | >500,000 | 1000–10,000 |
| Elephant sanctuary | +1 | +2 | 0.3 (0.5, n = 7) | 1,000–10,000 | 100–1,000 |
| Lion sanctuary | +1 | +2 | 0.0 (n = 1) | 10,000–100,000 | 100–1,000 |
| Orang-utan sanctuary | +3 | +2 | 6.0 (11.9, n = 4) | 10,000–100,000 | 100–1,000 |
| Dolphin sanctuary | +1 | +2 | - | 100,000–500,000 | <100 |
| Farmed wildlife attractions | |||||
| Civet coffee | -1 | -3 | 20.0 (n = 1) | - | 1,000–10,000 |
| Sea turtle farm | +1 | -3 | 20.0 (18.0, n = 4) | >500,000 | 10,000–100,000 |
| Tiger farms | -1 | -3 | - | 1000–10,000 | 1000–10,000 |
| Crocodile farms | +1 | -2 | 24.1 (26.6, n = 14) | >500,000 | >100,000 |
| Bear bile farming | -2 | -3 | - | >500,000 | 10,000–100,000 |
| Street performance | |||||
| Street dancing macaques | -1 | -2 | - | 1000–10,000 | 100–1000 |
| Hyena men in Nigeria | -1 | -2 | - | 1000–10,000 | <100 |
| Snake charming | -2 | -3 | - | 100,000–500,000 | 100–1000 |
| Bear dancing | -2 | -3 | - | 1000–10,000 | 100–1000 |
| Wild attractions | |||||
| Dolphin interactions (wild) | -2 | -2 | 0.9 (3.3, n = 23) | 10,000–100,000 | >100,000 |
| Gorilla trekking | +3 | -1 | 0.0 (0.0, n = 2) | 10,000–100,000 | 100–1000 |
| Gibbon watching | +3 | 0 | - | 1000–10,000 | <100 |
| Shark cage diving | -2 | -2 | 0.2 (0.5, n = 15) | >500,000 | 100–1000 |
| Polar bear sightseeing | -1 | -2 | - | 1000–10,000 | 100–1000 |