FROM KEITH & LINDSAY FISHER
From: "Keith and Lindsay Fisher" <>
Subject: Re: birding-aus Birdwatching Tourism
Date: Wed, 26 Jan 2000 12:03:33 +1000
Hi Everyone,
We've been reading the thread on tourism /promotional activities and
relate our experiences in
Cairns, particularly our interest in the Esplanade.
Most people would be aware of redevelopment plans for the Cairns
Esplanade (we hope) and our
involvement along with other interested members of Birds Australia
and Bird Observers Club of
Australia. As we have put forward our ideas of how such development
plans should be modified to take
into account the birdwatching experience of the Esplanade, we have
constantly come up against the
question of "how many people a year birdwatch along the Esplanade".
The tourist organisations and
developers want figures which are almost impossible to compile due to
the nature of birdwatchers
themselves. Whilst many tours pass through and could be monitored,
individual birdos (of which would
be the majority) pass through without anyone knowing. Without these
figures its hard to get tourist
bodies interested - how do we get these numbers?
24 hour monitoring?
We have conducted many promotional activities on the Esplanade with
such groups as the Double Helix
Club and several school groups with Jan England. We also have a wave
the waders goodbye promotion
each March organised through Birds Australia. The promotions with the
school children have received
enthusiastic starts but the initial interest soon wanes after
everyone has looked through the
telescope - then the parents become interested. Its hard promoting
those little brown jobs when even
birdwatchers themselves throw up their hands in dismay whilst trying
to identify them. However once
shown the many identification features it becomes clearer and
hopefully more interesting and
enjoyable.
Many people stop and ask why are we looking at the mud and when we
explain and give them a look
through the telescope most become very interested - The next step is
how do we expand on this
interest? Part of the redevelopment plans call for an environment
interpretive centre on the
Esplanade and we are pushing to have a good bird interpretive display
in it. We are also working
with the council to upgrade the now outdated posters of Esplanade
birds which was produced many
years ago by them. The drawings will be replaced by photos and will
be aimed at non birding people
being able to identify some of the birds easily seen on the Esplanade
- the Cairns City Council are
funding this project.
The local bird tour operators (most of whom are involved in this
discussion), do a great job in
promotion as it is their livelihood for which they get paid. However
they also do lots of promoting
that is unpaid through local bird groups, schools and tourist
agencies (however successful or not)
which goes largely unnoticed. Us amateurs do promotional activities
as time permits in our spare
time usually at a local level but with the increasing use of email we
are getting out to the world.
It is time consuming replying to peoples requests for information but
it is promoting our activity -
hooray for BirdingAus!
Cheers
Keith & Lindsay Fisher
PO Box 2209, Cairns QLD 4870
E-mail:
Russell Woodford
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