The fact that more and more tourists are visiting wilderness seabird colonies makes it important that the vulnerability of these colonies be well understood by all travellers on the coast. Disturbance is the worst threat. Each pair of auklets lays only one egg a year. Disturbance by a curious tourist will cause the adult to abandon the egg completely, out of fear of a more dangerous predator. However, once an egg has hatched, the adult has invested so much time and risked so many attacks by eagles and other predators that it will rarely abandon its young.
Tourism also threatens the habitat of colonies.
The burrows are fragile and collapse when a person stands on one. Fortunately, many of the small wooded islands with auklet colonies are secure, because they are inhospitable to visitors and offer neither drinking water nor campsites. On the other hand, the grass-covered islands that hold most of the breeding population look attractive to visitors. The cliffs offer spectacular vistas and opportunities for photographers. The beaches and hills of Triangle Island attract boaters, who want nothing more than to feel solid land under their feet for a while.