According to a new study released today, the number of birdwatchers
in the United States has now exceeded 500 million. This means, that
for each American 16 years of age or older there are now
approximately 2.3 birdwatchers active annually.

The University of Washington study was conducted between 1999 and
2004, and utilized methods including statistical analysis, in-depth
written surveys, and lengthy field observation. The results and
conclusions present some startling implications for this formerly
unobtrusive past time. According to the study's lead author, the
political, economic and cultural clout of birdwatchers (or 'birders')
has been grossly underestimated: "Previously, conservative estimates
claimed only one in three adults was a birder. That amounts to barely
enough to elect a national leader, and really couldn't be looked on
as a significant segment of society. Today's results indicate that
birders, at over 200% of the population, can work to wield influence
across the social spectrum."

According to the survey's narrow definition, a 'bird watcher' was
defined as one who has observed birds during the past year. Although
aiming to capture the entire breadth of the birdwatching phenomenon,
scientists were quick to note that the parameters of the study
eliminated those who only 'noticed', 'saw' or 'imagined' birds over
the course of the study's time frame. Armed with this scientific
rigor and advanced economic models, the following spending patterns
were discerned:
In any given year, bird watchers spend over $31 trillion pursuing
their hobby. This further breaks down into the following categories:
Retail sales $10,280,182,774,648
Economic output $11,342,635,563,377
Transportation $5,140,878,481,323
Salaries, wages, jobs $2,446,950,409,742
Federal & state taxes $1,639,678,444,431
In all, 'bird watching related spending' now constitutes 257.4% of
the annual GDP.

As is always the case with such scientific results, skeptics and
critics were quick to question the methodology and results of this
study. Perhaps the most cogent rebuttal to the nay-sayers can be
found in their own words: Only a few years ago these same critics
were attempting to cast doubt on the science behind the early
estimates that one-in-three Americans was a birder - but not because
this estimate was deemed too low, as is now obvious. No, instead
these same voices claimed that one-in-three was too high an estimate.
Nevertheless, today critics repeated familiar arguments in an attempt
to discredit the findings.

"There is no way these results are credible," claimed an avid birder
who requested anonymity. She continued, "I am in the field every
weekend and almost never see other bird watchers. If they are out
there, I want to know where they are birding and what they are
seeing."

A second skeptic, also quick to conceal his name, intoned, "Look at
the assumptions and definitions that lie at the heart of this report
- The criteria used to calculate numbers of birders and total
economic impact are preposterous and serve no cause other than the
creation of a false sense of power among a group still on the margins
of society."

In response, the study's lead researcher stated: "Elite birders are a
funny group. You would think they would be excited to hear the
results from this study. Instead, as so often happened in the past,
those who criticize are largely jealous and territorial when it comes
to definitions of 'birdwatchers' and 'birders.' Without getting into
the merits of their criticisms, let me just point out the lack of any
research to back up their claims. Given their inability to provide
statistical, qualitative or longitudinal data supporting their
claims, I think it is largely unnecessary to discuss whether or not a
subject need be 'human', 'physically present' and/or 'living in this
century' to qualify as a 'birdwatcher'. Likewise, their criticism of
our decision to convert all economic measures to current US dollars
belies a narrow parochialism on their parts: Why else would a serious
person object to our passerine-to-dollar ["accipi-conversion"],
scolopacidae-to-dollar ["peregri-version"], or our other important
new normalization techniques?"

Speaking at the Seattle new conference, the researcher concluded: "I
can think of no better date to release these results than today,
April 1st."

Matt Bartels
Seattle, WA
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