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Rural System? Just Dreaming …
A For-Profit Conglomerate for
Meaningful Jobs
Healthful Communities
and Improved Natural Resource Management
by Robert H. Giles, Jr., Ph.D.
Professor Emeritus
Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia
2007
Chapter 23. For the Birds: Official AviGolf
Dreaming: Sleepless and turning…can there be survival value for a population of birds if only the male birds have crests? Cardinals, blue jays, and titmice…big and little…Why do so many have them? Why just prominent in the males? What is their purpose? One may be classed as mutation, but not in several populations of different genera… but why in so many species? Surely conspicuous and displayed in courtship…but surely too expensive of energy and protein to suggest a superior winning strategy for the eons…Why?…What?…Groups …brain cooling devices in high-energy grain-eaters?… I need cool water. I have to sleep…the meeting tomorrow is important…Just dreaming…
| Like golf courses, AviGolf courses (not yet created, 2007) are special places for bird watchers. Players gain personal scores. Maintaining the courses is a challenge for managers. The sport expands worldwide. |
I was "brought up" as a youth in scouting to love bird watching. My scout leader, Dr. Sam Guss, to whom I own more than can ever be stated or repaid, was an amateur ornithologist, more than a "bird watcher," and loved to share his knowledge and zeal for a good daily bird count. (The maximum number of birds in an area or the count approaching that maximum is called "richness"). I raised homing pigeons, bantams, and in one year, ring-necked pheasants for release so I was familiar with and enjoyed birds. He gave me a model and kept a "life list" which is a check sheet of each species he had seen during his life. He was always on the hunt for another species or to see and re-confirm a rare species already checked on the list. I worked on a life list too and enjoyed studying books and listening to records so that I could recognize species and perhaps make a find that would add to my list. Christmas Bird Counts with local bird watchers was always a pleasant seasonal event and I usually added a bird or two to my life list on such days.
I bumped up the count of birds on my list, it seemed unfair to me, when I went from Virginia to work for the US Forest Service on a trail-building and fire-fighting crew in Oregon in the summer of 1952. I kept the field-guide book busy all summer, adding new species sightings to my list. Years later, I suffered slightly among game management professionals, for I considered myself among them in my interests in grouse, turkey, and quail, waterfowl and crop-damaging birds, but also an outsider, for I was one of the so-called dickey-bird watchers.
I took a course in ornithology, a cold, austere thing without a specimen or a field trip, in my Ph.D. program. My interest declined further as time slipped by and my hearing ability in the higher range of birdcalls declined. I continued reading about and studying birds for they held a special place in my life. They showered me with questions. Others around me increased their interest but few seemed to know little more than saying "feeders and bird houses" about their management. Funds here and there were released for a few studies of forest birds. I wrote the first "non-game" plan for the state wildlife agency. It included many options for the birds. (Non-game has always been a non-word. Game birds were always "non-game" when the hunting season closed.) Peculiar claims were advanced about what birds needed and what the effects of forest harvests had on them. The value of birds seemed to be in question, as if we could justify action on the forest…or not … with such numbers. We seriously discussed the possibilities of explicitly valuing pet-like creatures, as if the numbers would ever be used satisfactorily in public discussions.
I worked for several years on a paper on the "worth of a duck" after I learned of challenges which arose within the US Wildlife Refuge System. Losses to dams, power lines, and other developments had to be mitigated, at least factored into statements about impacts. Cost-benefit ratios had to be computed. Loss of birds was a cost, and if they had a monetary value, then they could be added into the cost column, the one antagonistic to the benefit column. The efforts were discouraging. Only "priceless" seemed to be of the right currency and magnitude for the potential loss of endangered species to be worth enough to slow or (rarely) stop a project.
I liked the economists' concept of "opportunity cost" which is approximately that something like a bird has to be worth at least as much to a person as the thing that was forgone to have it. If I know that a woodpecker depends on trees of a certain species and size, and I know that the trees will bring $3000 if I cut them, but I do not do so in order to have the woodpeckers, then as a rational person, they must be worth at least $3000 to me. There were several flaws or uncertainties and too many dimensions to discuss for this valuation to "sing" for me or for others. Then along came my re-discovery of Shakespeare, my embarrassment at my sophomoric falling under Frost's small phrase, "rediscovery of the trite." As of yore, the pound of flesh cannot be valued alone. Many things are inseparable, valuable only when together, only when within a context. The presence of meaningless or worthless things when alone, may give value to other things when with them. Economists must have a special word or phrase for the value of something to the economy of an area. The president's house is an attraction and "makes" the area a tourists' area. A building or natural feature is "worth the trip to see it" for the family or individual but its value has to be tallied over time as all of the net financial gains in commodities and services not available to a nearby similar community. A wall that obscures ugly things, adds value to observers and land on at least one side…and all walls have two sides, perhaps one that is valueless. Of course communities are never similar, and the difference is the important point.
"They will not place the proposed corridor for the power line through that person's house!" is not a surprising statement. There are things so highly valued that they do not have to be explicitly valued; there is common knowledge that the costs of such action will be very high and likely to exceed the benefits, that there is a value dimension to honor and respect, and so an alternative power line corridor is selected…without computation.
I sought ways to assign value to wild fauna and other important natural resources, for they seemed to me to be under attack and when close to the time for decision, it seemed that value was the determining topic. If they could not be convincingly valued, then they lost in each decision about whether to build or not and where to build to avoid loss or impairment. I found over 20 ways to value wild faunal resources but the key phrase for me was "convincingly valued."
One way that I had not found was the profitable enterprise argument. It was akin to the historic site or the congressman's-house value approach. The value of wildlife (or similar natural resource) was that of the value to an enterprise that was dependent upon it. The value of a wildlife enterprise was expressible in terms, over time, of important things directly tied to and interdependent: employment, payrolls, tax base, schools, and community services.
I began to imagine a wildlife activity that is so well used, so much liked, that produced so much employment and tax revenue, and provided so many environmental services that no one would consider destroying or impairing the wild faunal communities associated with that activity…without computation … of all of those values. I called it Avi. Later AviGolf emerged with Richard C. Rivera in first uses in Guatemala at Buen Aventura private nature reserve where there were 186 species of birds available to be seen by guests.
In 1985 I began working with students on an imaginary project that might one day have a practical application (rather than some pointless make-work assignments). The learning objectives were scattered among analyses, design, presentation, writing, ornithology, and computer programming,
We worked on an imaginary new for-profit sport of bird watching on private, franchised, bird-watching courses. It had strong parallels to conventional golf. I thought it could be developed on an existing golf course, especially in the rough areas and surrounding trees and landscape. Early morning use would not detract from golfing on the course itself. Capital investment would be minor. Better, I imagined the course on an area already rich with bird species. Better still, much more of a challenge with its creative demands, was the possibility of developing a business related to an area around a trail that allowed informed users to see more different bird species year around than in any other nearby areas.
The challenges were simultaneous; no 1, 2, 3 sequence in solving them seem possible. For success, we had to imagine an increasing market, sources of income over time, diversification potentials, and one, at least as great as the others, mastering the ecology of the birds of a region so well that all of the conditions for maximum species richness could be brought into or cultivated rapidly in a small useable area for some long period.
The imagined Avi course was a place where people singly or in small groups would pay a fee or show a membership card, enter data about themselves and past visits and the conditions of the day, then walk the trail and see with binoculars or other aids many species of birds.
Of course I knew of and had visited many areas on public lands where bird species are abundant. I enjoyed bird walks on private lands. The differences for AviGolf were:
I think that there is a major segment of society that has limited time, seeks special interests, enjoys being outdoors, and welcomes the peace, security, quiet, and beauty of the typical golf course. There are among them people who would like to be involved in things natural, intellectually challenging, something with potential dimensions, and with opportunities far beyond those of the conventional bird hike. There are people that are interested in birds who want to see places of excellence, places where the best current practices are at work…together. I knew that the public land and water resources were present. They cannot meet all of the needs, tastes, and preferences of the population. They do not meet the intense needs of visitors, local or international, for guided bird watching and life-list building (e.g., a record of 1530 species placing him 149th in the world). Occasional sighting of birds on public lands is not the same as active bird watching, a purposeful and directed activity. Active bird watching, as I was instructed as a youth, is not the same as participating in AviGolf.
I knew that in 1999 that birding was among the top five fastest growing activities among 25% of the population. The number was increasing faster than the population. There are millions of "wildlife watchers" and they seem to be increasing, and among them the number of bird watchers had increased 4 times in the 20 years before the turn of the century. In 2002, over 50,000 birdwatchers sent in their checklists of birds seen in their backyards to a national project requesting such lists. There is an interest, and it seems stalled for there are no known new options. AviGolf has a perceived customer base. There ought to be at least a few people out there who would use an AviGolf course or well distributed courses. I think there are many.
I imagined a small group or individuals on the AviGolf course during the early weekend morning. The bird watcher is greeted by a receptionist, pays a fee or shows membership, has his or her membership (or new) number entered, gets a "handicap" for the day and time based on the season and the weather, receives a recent list of birds likely on the area (a hand-held computer may be used), and is admitted to the course. Rules are explained to the novice and a rulebook is available. They identify and check off species seen. (Numbers seen were not counted except for personal interests.) Dates seen became part of the personal record with emphasis on benefits from the memories of when the numbered sighting was made. Afterwards, during Monday-morning office coffee-talk, like bragging about the weekend golf score, they would comment on having gotten 67 birds. By now, coffee-colleagues would recognize that "having gotten" meant seeing 67 different species and his reported score of 81 was a computer-cranked number that pulled together the goodness of the day, his past experiences, the date, time spent, and climatic conditions. Each person, as desired, gets grossly tested for hearing and sight to achieve a personal calibration, a "handicap," that may be included in the par for the course for them on that day. Each bird is assigned a daily bird-conspicuousness index and extra points are gotten for seeing inconspicuous or rare birds. An honor system is at work. No one checks. Any paying person can use the course for any bird-related benefits that they desire…including casual walking and watching. Most try to beat their prior score, or to best a score on the same chrono- and pheno-date last year.
AviGolf participants, along with ecologists and bird watchers world wide, tend to be more interested in phenological time than standard time. This means that they are interested in seasonal advances, somewhat like farmers' talk about "the corn being late this year." Phenology is the study of the occurrence of biological events (e.g., left fall, bud break, eggs hatching). Each AviGolf course had its own indicator plants for bud growth, bud break, leaf length, and leaf fall. Birds seen on a calendar date were compared to those seen in other years on different dates when the season was behind or advanced. Of course migration was related to conditions that affected these natural timing standards. Emergence of certain insects (a function of temperature, moisture, and photoperiod) made some birds more conspicuous in some years than others. Some birding work is done consistently on the same date each year. Populations of birds (like the ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellus) are reported going up and down, often when they are not, just because the birds have not yet arrived (or departed or become active in their conspicuous behaviors) for they are sensitive to many climatic factors, not the date on the calendar.
One player was recruiting colleagues to join him when an expert birder (like the golf-course pro) was going to conduct a guided tour next weekend. A subtle competition was underway.
Other players were not so subtle. Players could keep their own life lists for birds seen anywhere, but a separate list was kept for personal sightings on AviGolf courses. Possibilities increased as more courses were franchised. Those players with exceptionally long lists were notable (if they allowed it) in the Internet site for all participants. AviGolf life-list builders went from course to course, building a cumulative list. A new course was to open in New Mexico, others in Belize and Guatemala. After a New River course proved profitable, a lakeside boat-only course was planned for Malawi, East Africa. Another course was accessible on a mountainside and was only used by busloads of visitors brought to it. The species list potential upped the ante in competition. As in golf, the sightings were strictly on an individual honor system. Claims of birds seen but not on the official course list were carefully critiqued and additions were welcomed since the managed courses might add to the local species richness.
Experts conducted custom trips to "get" specific birds or groups for individual life lists.
The managers of the courses were recruited from among people recognized as the best avian ecologists in the world. Recruiting and training local guides and aids was on going. This was a delightful penetration of the staid university and agency birding group. There was competition, other rungs added to a potential career ladder as an ornithologist. The awareness itself was like fresh air into a room where there were few opportunities other than for teaching or for a job meeting the rare, diverse demands of engineering firms doing impact analyses. The demands of getting and keeping high bird species richness in a small area…year after year … had never been attempted. Success was watched daily. Inability to perform had harsh results, very unlike those where ornithologists or bird watchers are now employed. The expertise required is almost unimaginable. Bird richness in a small easily-walked area is more a function of the presence of water and the ages of plant species than of the ecological communities present. Thus, while some plants age and become beneficial to some species, others fall out of usefulness to species or the probabilities of bird use declines. Of course yearly differences affect insects and moisture and thus the manager must accommodate these needs since the birds are dependent upon them. Such knowledge and managerial responses to it are required because profits related to all AviGolf activity are dependent upon high, sustained bird richness.
Players, at their own pace along trails, observe birds, typically trying to see all of the birds of the carefully-designed courses over many visits. They try to "max out" a course, to get the greatest number of life-list additions from each Avi course. They walk through well-managed habitats especially planned by wildlife managers to diversify the birds (i.e., to maximize richness), make sightings likely and pleasant. They may enjoy each sighting, the ecological relations of the birds, or they may be trying to best their personal previous score or to out-compete a friend. The courses are simply wonderful places to stroll. Step-asides are provided for observers so that a bird can be watched for as long as liked. The rules of passing and sharing observations are as explicit as those of conventional golf. Small children are discouraged from admission for they rarely have interests in the different birds. Some courses may later have play areas with minimum instruction to keep the courses attractive to families.
Observers go through different habitats seeking the birds that are common to each. They may use the blinds available, may take a boardwalk high into the trees to see warblers, and may walk near a marsh or mud flat to get to other species. There are places to sit, places to stand as others walk by. Course customs develop and sightings are eagerly shared with passersby. Most people use binoculars. A few use telescopes. Collapsible speakers' pointers are commonly seen and used to point to birds and the direction of a call. A serving-line model is used to prevent bunching-up or to minimize disturbance or maximize privacy along the course.
Franchise courses become available, some in other countries. An international membership is established with superior players announced. Avi was renamed Official AviGolf to delay competition, allow the rules and documents to be developed under copyright, and to encourage and allow other courses to develop that, when meeting our standards, may gain the designation of "Official," one certified as having excellent conditions and one with all of the benefits, resources, and services that we offer for course owners as well as participants. Official AviGolf works interactively with The Tours Group, the Forest Group, and the Gardens Group. Large Alpha Earth deposits made along courses attract some birds. The products and GIS groups are involved. The AviGolf courses may exist alone but the synergistic effects of many enterprises that are closely related can reduce the risks inherent in start-up operations, reduce costs and delays, and the courses themselves can increase the probability of a satisfactory, memorable experience of all visitors and guests.
An e-catalog makes available rule books, books and CDs on bird watching and ornithology and ecology, binoculars, specialized clothing, hiking staffs and pointers, listening aids, photographs, home bird feeders and houses, lawn management service, avian pest management aids, and camera supplies. Night course work is available with night-viewing equipment rentals. Groups may use the course, but usually only small-groups or single observers are found along the trails in all seasons. Periodically, AviGolf may present an annual event for members and others. Major courses offer travel opportunities and re-unions for players at specific courses. Each may be similar to the Brownsville Texas Birding Classic and, within it, teams of birders will work for prizes. This Classic is an educational event and equipment show, with lecturers, book signing, and entertainment. Relations or advertising and cooperative tours and Rural System Inn affiliations can likely be made with a variety of commercial interests and advertising.
Each week a report is produced via the Internet, naming the top 10-20 AviGolf players on Official AviGolf courses. A national list is also presented. A national list is given to subscribers of AviGolf News showing the top 20 scores of players in the previous month. The best courses are listed, based on all of the scores of all of the players. After a certain number, say 110, it becomes harder to add a new species. Points are awarded for these next-level advances.
A budget system provides automated address labels, mailing and publication announcements and records of who spends what and when. A gross simulator suggests the interaction of planned changes, people attending, operation costs, number of courses, etc.
Several Rural System Tracts in the region were the first places that this challenging new sport became a reality. The potential players are numerous. Once created, other courses in the Eastern and Western U.S., Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Senegal, India, and elsewhere may be created as franchises. Confident of the financial potential, the natural resource knowledge challenges are exciting for perceptive staff. It seems likely that the courses may be franchised world wide and that their presence can offer exceptional students of ecology, ornithology, and faunal system management high paying jobs that challenge their intellect, creativity and synthetic abilities as they participate with high financial contributions within the Rural System conglomerate.
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