[mou] Some Birding tourism dollar data.

[Patrick McNulty]

Randy,

Knowing how I can procrastinate on cleaning everything up when i return from 
a trip, there is no telling
when I might finally give you a detailed accounting, so I will just give you 
some rough info now while the spirit is moving, and you can maybe get the 
first line filled in on your spreadsheet..

My big Christmas present this year is that I am flying to Minneapolis from 
Santa Barbara on Friday morning, Jan 14, renting a car and driving to a 
motel in Duluth, and flying back on Tuesday Jan 18.  Motel about $220,  car 
$140, airfare about $320.  If history is any guide, I'll spend $10-15/day on 
food before 6pm and another $25 after 6 pm on food, drink, and perhaps pool 
tables if I find any.  I'm just guessing, but I'll probably drive 4-500 
miles, so whatever it costs for gas there in a rental car for 500 miles. 
When I was there for the first time, in April '02, I hired a guide for the 
first time in my life since I wasn't finding anything, a very nice guy, and 
paid him $120 to take me around for about 5 hours.  He found us my life 
woodcocks displaying, which was great, but another large part of his value 
was in demonstrating to me that I wasn't as dumb as I feared, since he 
coundn't find any of the other targets either. Then I found my own the next 
day by using all of his good advice, and that was great too.  I don't expect 
to pay a guide this time, since I hope to be able to find my birds just 
using all the great info on this list (the postings on MOU-net are the 
direct cause of me coming to MN to spend money), but I may spend $20 in 
Kinko's or someplace else with internet connection to check this list and 
see if anyone still trusts me enough to post a Boreal Owl sighting if I 
haven't found one by Sunday.  (Although I would rather not see my life 
Boreal Owl than do anything which would substantially contribute to its 
death, I do not think that I am disturbing the birds I see any more than is 
the rest of their daily experience;  if I do seem to be perturbing the bird, 
I will leave.)  (On reading Michael Hendrickson's summary of birder's 
behavior locally, I'm thinking that there might be a potential research 
project in testing whether birders migrating to areas with sub-zero 
temperatures are significantly better behaved than birders visiting areas 
with temperatures over 70 degrees.  Or actually, I think the hypothesis 
should not be about the average birder's behavior, which is pretty good 
everywhere, but about a significant reduction in outlier-point jerks, since 
they are too self-indulgent to put up with your climate.)  And I'll spend at 
least another $20-50 on books, maps, and whatever else I can't resist.  Or 
choose not to resist, since I'm out birding alone and, as my wife says, off 
the leash.

Patrick McNulty
Santa Barbara, CA


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Randy Frederickson" <fredericksonr@willmar.k12.mn.us>
To: <mou-net@cbs.umn.edu>; <mnbird@lists.mnbird.net>
Sent: Tuesday, January 11, 2005 10:50 AM
Subject: [mou] Help


> Birding Friends-
>
> I am attempting to collect information on the economic impact of birders
> this winter in Minnesota.  To the best of my knowledge, we have never
> attempted to document this aspect of the birding issue before in Minn, and
> it is significant (esp. in this year of minimal snowfall and low tourist
> revenue).
>
> While working on/with the conservation committee the past several years,
> there were many times I could have used real numbers/data, generated here.
>
> You have my word no names will ever appear as a result of this request 
> (and
> I will not show this information to your spouse!)  I think the data could
> greatly enhance our status as a viable and collective voice on 
> environmental
> issues.
>
> I am asking you to break expenditures into three general categories:
> Travel (gas, tickets), lodging, and meals.  Rough estimates are much 
> better
> than no data at all.  If you want to break this down into two groupings, 
> one
> owl related and one not, that would be great, but I do not want the 
> request
> to be so bothersome we do not do it.
>
> Also, it is important WE HEAR FROM ALL OUR OUT OF STATE friends who have
> spent time and money enjoying our feathered good fortune.
>
> Please, if you have time to spend a day traveling to see these wonderful
> birds, take 5 minutes to help us help ourselves.
>
> If you do not want a name attached to your expenditures, that is fine. 
> You
> can either e-mail me your information or send it via conventional mail
> (address below).  Provided sufficient and meaningful data is collected, I
> will share it via one of our MOU publications at a future date (and via 
> list
> serve, if requested to do so).
>
> I would like to use the following inclusive dates for data:  Oct. 1, 2004 
> to
> Feb. 28, 2005.
>
> Thank you in advance,
>
> Randy Frederickson
> MOU conservation committee
>
>
>
> Randy Frederickson
> 416 19th St. NW
> Willmar, MN  56201
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
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