Abstract Context. Wildlife tourism is expanding and can detrimentally affect taxa such as penguins, if not managed carefully. The yellow-eyed penguin (Megadyptes antipodes) is an endangered species, with mainland populations projected to decline to extinction in the next 40 years, despite conservation interventions. Their nesting sites are exposed to increasing numbers of human visitors, which contributes to reduced reproductive success. Aims. We evaluated the effectiveness of a breeding colony (Boulder Beach) closure to the public, which was implemented to reduce visitor disturbance. Methods. We compared reproductive success 5 years before and 5 years during the closure with success at an adjacent site (Sandfly Bay) that experiences high human disturbance, over the same time periods. Key results. Beach closure did not result in an increase in chick mass or survival at Boulder Beach; however, trends at adjacent Sandfly Bay suggested that, without the closure, chick survival at Boulder Beach would likely have declined. Chick survival decreased at Sandfly Bay across the two 5-year periods, whereas chick survival at Boulder Beach did not decline, but remained constant during the closure years. Conclusions. The beach closure was beneficial because it appeared to buffer environmental factors, so that mean chick survival remained constant rather than declining. Implications. Beach closures might be difficult to implement because of public expectations regarding free access to coastal land in New Zealand, but they should be considered at sites where increasing numbers of visitors are likely to have detrimental impacts on wildlife. Without urgent action, these culturally important animals will likely be extinct on mainland New Zealand within the next few decades. Beach closures may represent an effective management measure to increase population resilience by decreasing the detrimental impacts of visitors on breeding success.

中文翻译：

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不受管制的访客准入对黄眼企鹅雏鸡雏鸟数量和存活率的影响

摘要上下文。野生动物旅游业正在扩大，如果管理不当，可能会对企鹅等分类群产生不利影响。黄眼企鹅 (Megadyptes antipodes) 是一种濒临灭绝的物种，尽管采取了保护干预措施，但预计未来 40 年内大陆种群数量将减少至灭绝。他们的筑巢地点接触到越来越多的人类访客，这导致繁殖成功率降低。目标。我们评估了一个繁殖地（博尔德海滩）对公众关闭的有效性，这是为了减少游客干扰而实施的。方法。我们将关闭前 5 年和关闭期间 5 年的繁殖成功与在同一时间段内经历高人类干扰的相邻地点（沙蝇湾）的成功进行了比较。关键结果。海滩关闭并未导致博尔德海滩的小鸡数量或存活率增加；然而，邻近 Sandfly Bay 的趋势表明，如果不关闭，博尔德海滩的小鸡存活率可能会下降。Sandfly Bay 的小鸡存活率在两个 5 年期间下降，而 Boulder Beach 的小鸡存活率没有下降，但在关闭年份保持不变。结论。海滩关闭是有益的，因为它似乎缓冲了环境因素，因此平均小鸡存活率保持不变而不是下降。影响。由于公众对免费进入新西兰沿海土地的期望，海滩关闭可能难以实施，但在游客人数不断增加可能对野生动物产生不利影响的地点，应考虑关闭海滩。如果不采取紧急行动，这些具有重要文化意义的动物可能会在未来几十年内在新西兰大陆灭绝。关闭海滩可能是一种有效的管理措施，可以通过减少游客对繁殖成功的不利影响来提高种群恢复力。