Sample Questionnaire for a Birding Festival

In 1998 the American Birding Association, in partnership with City of Brighton, Colorado Bird Observatory, Colorado Division of Wildlife, Colorado State Parks, and Denver Field Ornithologists, helped organize a birding festival in Colorado. The one-day event was held at Barr Lake State Park in conjunction with International Migratory Bird Day.

The aim of the event was to educate the local community about birds and the economic importance of birding and birders. Activities included

• Bird walks for beginning birders and advanced birders, led by local bird experts
• Bird-banding demonstrations
• Educational activities and programs about birds for children
• Informational booths exhibiting information, arts and crafts, and merchandise related to birds

Entry fee was $4 per vehicle and proceeds from the festival benefited the Barr Lake Prairie Restoration Project. A questionnaire was handed out to each vehicle. The stated aim of the questionnaire was "to help us understand the economic impact of your visit to the Barr Lake area. The information you provide may help us promote the interests of birders locally, and to ensure the conservation of local bird habitats".

We are making a PDF version of the questionnaire* available for downloading to birding festival organizers. Our aim is to provide standardization of the kind of information that is collected at birding festivals so that comparisons are possible. *(You need to have Adobe Acrobat Reader installed to read, save, or print the pdf form).

The questionnaire was based on a more comprehensive one developed by Ted Eubanks of Fermata.