WHY CARE ?

Birds are critical links in native ecosystems. Wild birds pollinate plants, distribute seeds and eat enormous numbers of insects. According to the American Ornithological Council, on average, a pair of adult warblers removes caterpillars from more than a million leaves in the two to three weeks from the time the pair's young hatch until they leave the nest. This behaviour helps maintain healthy wetlands, forests, and agricultural lands. Creating a collision-free urban environment for migratory birds will have a lasting effect in helping reduce greenhouse gas & air emissions, while aid in conserving freshwater ecosystems. For example, healthy plants serve as filters for both air and freshwater ecosystems.

Turn off lights > Protect Birds > Strengthen Staging Areas > Filter Watersheds = Conserve Air & Freshwater Ecosystems
Birds are big business! Birding is reportedly second only to gardening as the most rapidly growing leisure interest across North America. The number of bird-watchers in the U.S. and Canada grew 155 percent between 1983 and 1995. The Fish and Wildlife Service survey states that 62.9 million Americans participate in wildlife watching and spend $29.2 billion doing so.
Data for "Wildlife Watchers" in the Mid-Atlantic States from the Census Bureau's
"1996 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation."
State
No. of People Observing
Wildlife at Home
No. of People Observing Wildlife
at Least 1 Mile from Home
Equipment Expenditures
Travel Expenditures
Total
Expenditures
VA
1,877,000
942,000
$501,500,000
$196,745,000
$698,245,000
MD
1,267,000
662,000
$410,025,000
$95,487,000
$505,512,000
DE
188,000
108,000
$51,602,000
$12,278,000
$63,880,000
PA
3,383,000
1,559,000
$598,879,000
$259,476,000
$858,355,000
NJ
1,561,000
612,000
$643,337,000
$220,608,000
$863,945,000
Total
8,276,000
3,883,000
$2,205,343,000
$784,594,000
$2,989,937,000

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