Biodiversity, international tourism and development

We analyze whether biodiversity is increasing the receipts of tourism and beneficial for Least Developed Countries (LDCs). The underlying assumption is that a rich biodiversity provides a comparative advantage for most LDCs. We use a simple trade theory framework. The model is supported by an empirical analysis. The main findings are that first LDCs seem to have a comparative advantage in (sustainable) tourism, that second incidence of birds as the probably best explored taxonomic group has a positive impact on inbound tourism receipts per capita, and that third the rate of endangered to total birds is negatively influencing tourism receipts.