Biodiversity and bird welfare in evaluation of tourism impact and sustainability in arid environment

Abstract Nature‐based tourism is rapidly expanding in arid regions, raising concerns about its long‐term sustainability and potential impacts on biodiversity. However, empirical evidence evaluating its effects on both species diversity and animal welfare remains limited. This study investigates how intensive tourism influences bird diversity and welfare in a desert nature reserve near Dubai, United Arab Emirates, a highly managed landscape that integrates tourism, conservation, and habitat restoration. Using a mixed‐method approach, we monitored change in bird diversity across years and assessed welfare indicators for a model nesting species, the red‐wattled lapwing ( Vanellus indicus ). The reserve employs spatial planning principles based on the recreational opportunity spectrum framework and a suite of management interventions, including artificial lakes, plantations, and designated visitor zones, to balance ecological integrity with recreational use. Our results show that bird diversity increased over the long term, with winter species richness increasing by 1.8 species/year, winter abundance by approximately 2950 individuals/year, and breeding species richness by 2.8 species/year, suggesting that habitat design and restoration efforts are effective. Despite high tourist visitation, especially during weekends, impacts on bird welfare were minimal. For the red‐wattled lapwing, we observed a slight reduction in nest attendance in high‐traffic areas but found no significant effects on nest survival or chick condition. Our findings demonstrate that when well‐managed, nature‐based tourism can coexist with conservation goals in a desert environment. We argue that structured habitat design, strategic visitor management, and fostering habituation and pro‐environmental behaviour among tourists are key to maintaining both biodiversity and human engagement in sensitive environments. This study provides practical guidance for sustainable tourism planning in arid protected areas by showing how visitor zoning, protection of undisturbed refuges, and integration of long‐term biodiversity and animal welfare monitoring can identify disturbance‐sensitive areas, support adaptive management, and help balance intensive nature‐based tourism with wildlife conservation. Read the free Plain Language Summary for this article on the Journal blog.