None of the respondents indicated that the damages caused their businesses to close permanently and, despite sustaining financial losses, these mTOR inhibitor businesses have since been able to rebuild. Only two respondents indicated that the negative impact of the hurricane on their business meant they needed to rely on alternative income sources (e.g. carpentry and restaurant work) ( Table 5). Several respondents noted that as a result of the severe impacts of hurricane Luis on Anguilla, it is now common-place for hotels on the
island to close during the hurricane season (n=3). Many respondents (n=8) stated they would be concerned if hurricane risk increased, because of the implications of the hurricane season on tourism and the impacts sustained from hurricane Luis. Only two respondents said that they were not worried about hurricane risk. Like the fishers, perceptions regarding climate change elicited relatively few responses (n=5) from the tourist operators ( Table 6). The climate change related threats that were of concern included increasing water temperature and coral bleaching (n=2), changing weather and tide patterns
(n=2) and the increasing risk of hurricanes (n=1). When the tourist operators were asked RG7204 specifically for their perceptions on the condition of the coral reef ecosystems, eight respondents stated that they had witnessed negative changes in the state of the reefs during their lifetime (i.e. physical damage to reefs (n=5), reduction in coral
cover (n=3), and loss of colour or bleaching (n=2)). Hurricane and storm damage was mentioned by most respondents (n=10) as the primary cause of coral reef decline in Anguilla. The second most commonly mentioned stressor was fishing (n=8), and respondents spoke of the combination of too many fishers, irresponsible fishing practices and a lack of enforcement leading to major declines in fish and shellfish abundance, with knock-on implications for the coral reef. Increased prevalence of coral bleaching Dipeptidyl peptidase was a concern of some tourist operators (n=3). Additional changes to the coral reefs were also mentioned by individual respondents, including the growing prevalence of algae, damage caused to reefs by boat anchors and marine-based pollution. The majority of respondents (n=11, 85%) stated that coral reef condition affects their business, because unhealthy coral reefs mean there are fewer fish, and their client-base wishes to see fish and coral. Several respondents also referred to tourist demand for seafood, and that coral reef condition affects this aspect of the tourism market. Many Caribbean islands are heavily dependent on tourism and fisheries for livelihood opportunities.