Contacts
Bruce Woods (907) 786-3695
A recent U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service publication reports that 46 million birdwatchers across America spent $32 billion in 2001 pursuing one of the Nation’s most popular outdoor activities. The report, Birding in the United States: A Demographic and Economic Analysis, is based on data collected during the 2001 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation.
The report defines a birder as an individual who travels a mile or more from home for the primary purpose of watching birds, or closely observes or tries to identify birds around the home. Those who simply enjoy spotting birds while mowing the lawn or picnicking at the beach were not counted as birders. Trips to zoos and observing captive birds also did not count as birdwatching. Watching birds near home is the most common form of birding. However, 40 percent (18 million) of all birders reported that they also travel to pursue their enthusiasm.
"This report tells us that more than a third of all Alaska residents are birdwatchers," said the Service’s Alaska Regional Director Rowan Gould. "In fact, on a per capita basis, only Montana and Vermont have more birders than Alaska has! More impressive still, almost half of the active birders that pursue their activity in Alaska are visitors to our state. This report underscores the economic importance of birdwatching to Alaska, and demonstrates exactly why it’s essential that we continue to work with our partners to restore and protect habitat to ensure healthy bird populations. This is especially clear in light of the report’s finding that fully 83% of nonresident birders do some or all of their birdwatching on America’s public lands, many of which are part of the National Wildlife Refuge System."
Nationally, birders spent $32 billion on gear, travel, food, and big ticket items such as canoes and off-road vehicles. This spending generated $85 billion in overall economic output, including $13 billion in federal and state income taxes, and supported more than 863,000 jobs. Nationwide, the net economic value of each nonresident birder is estimated to be $488 per year. Using that figure to calculate the contribution of the 157,290 birdwatchers who visit Alaska each year, the estimated economic value of nonresident birders to the state economy is a staggering $76,757,520.
Of course, there’s no mystery as to why public lands in the Last Frontier are so popular with bird enthusiasts. All of Alaska’s 16 National Wildlife Refuges provide world class birding opportunities. From the trails and boardwalks on Tetlin and Kenai National Wildlife Refuges to the remote waterways of Yukon Flats or Kanuti to the Kachemak Bay Shorebird Festival, which the Homer Chamber of Commerce and Alaska Maritime Wildlife Refuge sponsor each year with the help of numerous other partners, our public lands are rich in birding opportunities, and offer the chance to observe species that are rare or impossible to find elsewhere in America. Even in urban Anchorage, last year’s International Migratory Bird Day event, co-sponsored by the Anchorage Zoo, the Alaska and Anchorage Audubon Societies, KTUU-TV, and Bird Treatment and Learning Center, attracted almost 2000 people.
Other interesting facts about the impact of birding on Alaska include:
The Alaska Bald Eagle Festival, which will be held this year near Haines, Alaska, attracts upwards of 250 raptor fans each year. The 2003 event will run from November 12-16. Call (907) 766-3094 for information.
The Alaska Waterfowl Calendar, a project which encourages rural students to study waterfowl that occur near their homes and then submit either a piece of writing or a drawing to be published in the annual calendar, involved 56 villages last year, and drew 377 articles and 1559 pieces of artwork. Contact Cathy Rezabeck at (907) 786-3351 for information, or check out the website at
(http://alaska.fws.gov/ExternalAffairs/Education/GooseCalendar/).
Audubon’s Christmas bird counts last year involved almost 900 winter-hardy birders participating in 34 counts across the state. Contact your local Audubon office for information on this year’s event in your region, or locate your area contact person online at (www.absc.usgs.gov/research/bpif/cbc/cbc.contributors.html).
The State of Alaska is doing its bit to encourage birdwatching. A recently unveiled program called "Wings Over Alaska" (http://www.wildlife.alaska.gov/viewing/wings/wings_hm.cfm) offers a series of awards for birders able to identify 50, 125, 200 and 275 species of birds in the state.
Bird tourism brings in big bucks! Vacationing bird watchers pay upwards of $3,500 apiece for birding adventures, primarily cruises, in Alaska. To generate a list of such adventures, visit the Alaska Wilderness Recreation Travel Association website (http://www.awrta.org/plantrip.cfm) and use the search function to explore birding vacation opportunities across the state.
Even in little Tok, May’s Upper Tanana Migratory Bird Festival, sponsored by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, in partnership with the local Chamber of Commerce, school district and area businesses, has drawn nearly 800 birdwatchers annually in past years. Contact Tetlin National Wildlife Refuge (907) 883-5312 for information.
The Alaska Junior Duck Stamp Program, an integrated art and science curriculum developed to teach environmental science and habitat conservation to schoolchildren, drew 1108 entries last year, with 72 teachers participating. Contact Shannon Nelson or Jennifer Reed at (907) 456-0440 for information on how to participate, or visit the website at (http://alaska.fws.gov/jrduck/index.htm).
General information about birding events in Alaska can be found on the American Bird Center’s "Bird Watching Alaska" website (www.americanbirdcenter.com/abc-alaska.htm).
This growing awareness of birding comes at what might be seen as exactly the right time. According to a 2003 USGS publication ( Sauer, Hines and Fallon’s The North American Breeding Bird Survey, Results and Analysis) almost one in four bird species in the United States showed significant declines in population between 1966 and 2002, and these losses can be attributed primarily to the degradation and destruction of habitat. Perhaps the evidence of the economic value of birdwatching detailed in Birding in the United States: A Demographic and Economic Analysis will provide the impetus needed to help reverse that trend.
The full report is available on-line at (http://library.fws.gov/nat_survey2001_birding.pdf). Information about "Banking on Nature," a companion report calculating the economic value of National Wildlife Refuges to local communities can be found at (http://news.fws.gov/newsreleases/r9/081A6A70-B580-4C10-B32894DF2C1CE4D0.html).
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting, and enhancing fish, wildlife, and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the more than 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 542 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resource offices, and 81 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
- FWS-
For more information about the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,visit our home page at http://www.fws.gov
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