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Karl Agius et al.

alongside more recent illegal activities and lack of action from authorities, that is limiting the
potential for ecotourism in the Maltese archipelago.
As reported in the literature, habitat fragmentation on islands has been linked with human
activity (Deidun, 2010). Relevant anthropogenic impacts identified in the study area include
development, agricultural activity, quarrying, and tourism. Habitat fragmentation was found to
be a major limitation on larger islands, especially on the densely populated island of Malta. Malta
is one of the world’s most densely populated countries, with limited land resources (Markwick,
2000), making the use of open spaces a highly contested issue (Grima, 1997). Furthermore,
various policies adopted by authorities, including those favouring over-development, have
aggravated the situation.
Habitat fragmentation has led to a situation in which the remaining patches of wild areas
that have the potential to serve as ecotourism venues are dispersed across the archipelago. In
fact, in contrast to what occurred on most other islands in the study, stakeholders from Malta
and Gozo felt the need to identify several distinct, small areas, located at a relatively far distance
from one another, which could serve as ecotourism venues. The dispersion of protected areas
and the visibility of human impact even within such sites explains why emphasis has been placed
on the need for site selectivity. One should also note that studies on the ecotourism potential of
Malta (Salerno, 2009) and Gozo (Ronsisvalle, 2006) have focused on the potential for
ecotourism within specific pockets.
In the case of Malta, most such sites are found in coastal areas, as outlined by stakeholders.
Yet one should note that, in most cases, such areas are also close to sites that have been heavily
impacted by tourism-related development, due to the high economic importance of coastal
tourism on islands (Deidun, 2010). Other sites have been heavily impacted by quarrying activity
in coastal areas (Mallia et al, 2002), thereby casting doubt on their potential as ecotourism
venues.
In the case of Lampedusa, on which anthropogenic impact is also evident, the island has
suffered less habitat fragmentation than has Malta or Gozo due to its much lower population
density. As a result, one still finds extensive wild or rehabilitated areas, which can serve as
ecotourism venues. Nevertheless, as in the case of Malta and Gozo, Lampedusa stakeholders felt
the need to identify pockets on the island that are ideal for ecotourism. In the case of Favignana,
due to illegal development and extensive anthropogenic activities such as quarrying in coastal
areas, habitat fragmentation has been recorded.
A related concern raised by various stakeholders, including ecotourists and academics, is
the limited size of venues earmarked for ecotourism as a result of habitat fragmentation. For
example, although the Maltese archipelago has the largest total area of Natura 2000 sites (245
km ) and a 95.1 km of protected area in total, the average size of terrestrial protected areas is
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2
1.75 km on Malta and 0.86 km on Gozo, figures that are much lower than the average size of
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2
protected areas on the other islands in the study, even if these other islands have less protected
land in total (EUR-Lex, 2015).
Habitat fragmentation and limited venue size necessitates travel between numerous sites
during an ecotour, and although distances are short, travelling from one area to another
introduces logistical difficulties, experiences of traffic, and a higher carbon footprint, which do
not reflect ecotourism principles. Such problems become more pronounced on larger islands

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