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Better Birding in Maine? That'd Be Really Tweet

June 03, 2009 - AUGUSTA -- Maine's new state birding trail is an experiment, said Bob Duchesne, the trail's founder.

The Maine Birding Trail, announced by the state two weeks ago, will take a few years to catch on with expert birding tourists and locals who enjoy exploring their own state. But Duchesne is confident it will be successful.

Duchesne, a Hudson legislator in the Maine House of Representatives, did the bulk of the research for the Maine Birding Trail brochure and his more detailed book of the same name, which was published by Down East Books. He spent six years gathering information for both.

The brochure was a partnership between several state departments, Maine Audubon and Duchesne. An $18,000 grant from the Maine Outdoor Heritage Fund paid for the 20,000 copies that were distributed to tourism and chamber of commerce offices.

"The genesis was that Bob did all the legwork identifying sites," said Eliza Townsend, the Maine Department of Conservation's deputy commissioner. "About two years ago, he met with (the department) to urge that Maine develop a birding trail, because this is a growing demographic and an economic opportunity for Maine, especially rural Maine.

"(Commissioner Pat McGowan) asked me to make it happen. ... We got the grant and went from there."

The brochure and birding trail were modeled after similar trails created in Florida and Texas.

Duchesne said the new trail – like his new bird guiding business – will take time for knowledgeable birders to discover. But once they do, he said, Maine will enjoy the same notoriety of birding states such as the Sunshine and Lone Star states.

"Like any product, you have to let people know how to use the product," said Duchesne of Maine's birding spots, which offer views of puffins, bald eagles, pileated woodpeckers and more.

"What I've learned through guiding is what level of birder it attracts," he said. "Some people are after key species, and others are after the experience. By and large, more people (who hire me) are interested in the experience and a wide range of species. Right now, I already have more (business) than I can handle with my work in the Legislature."

The state is also hoping the birding trail encourages locals to explore Maine's parks and open space.

"We have 12 park sites listed in the bird guide, and one of our parks, Cobscook Bay, has the highest concentration of eagles in the state," said Jeanne Curran, Department of Conservation spokeswoman. "Aroostook State Park, our oldest state park, is having a major birding festival on Saturday, June 13. The park is especially known for its variety of woodpeckers."

Duchesne has spent the past 20 years guiding birders in Maine for the Bangor chapter of Maine Audubon. He has also guided in New Hampshire, New Brunswick, Quebec and the Florida Everglades.

For the Maine Birding Trail, he researched birding spots as well as nearby amenities. He married hot birding locations with recreational destinations to create must-see locations for tourists.

"The intention is to get more people to come to the sate and spend money here," he said. "And those who would be more avid birders would come here with their family members. All the locations have a wider interest (than birding)."

But the trail is not just for those from out of state.

Duchesne said when he guides in Maine, he is amazed by locals new to birding who don't know about the colorful and much-sought-after birds in their backyard.

"This opens up the ability for locals to do exploring on their own," he said. "And even expert (birders) in Portland aren't familiar with northern Maine birds or Down East birds. And northern Maine birders hear about places like Evergreen Cemetery and Capisic Park. They read about them on the listserv, the exciting birds there. But they don't have directions."

Now they do.

DEIRDRE FLEMING, Portland Press Herald, May 28, 2009


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