MIKE BRAUN What's a bird worth?

See that flash of red that just flew by your window. A cardinal. State bird. A good-looking feathered-friend all decked out in red and black.
So, what's this crimson animal aviator worth to you? Chances are, more than you think.
Recently, Audubon Ohio, the Buckeye State arm of the National Audubon Society, launched a new program focusing on birds and business.
'Ecotourism': Called the Birding Trails and Festivals program, Audubon Ohio sees it as an initiative that could give Ohio communities a glimpse at the potentials of "ecotourism."
And there are a LOT of potentials, or for the more economically minded, DOLLARS, to be had.
Consider this: The state of Texas netted $1.2 billion from nature tourism in 1996. I said BILLION.
In New Jersey, Cape May County alone brought in $31 million in 1997 from birders visiting the area.
In the Platte River area of Nebraska, birdwatchers and others flocking there to view the rare and endangered Sandhill crane for just a few weeks each year dropped almost $28 million.
Clearly, there's gold in them thar birds.
So, to try to help Ohio realize some of the "riches" of nature, Audubon Ohio will use this newly created program as an avenue to work with communities in the state to develop birding trails, wildlife festivals and other "opportunities" in ecotourism.
Where program's used: The program is first being used in the Cleveland area with an existing trail and festival -- the Lake Erie Wing Watch -- to be used as a model for the remainder of the state.
Ohio is a prime area for this type of program. The state has a large and varied population of birds ranging over an equally diverse selection of habitats including marshes in the western Lake Erie area, rivers and lakes, northeastern Ohio's bogs, extensive forested areas, and a rare segment of prairie in west-central Ohio.
Audubon Ohio considers bird watching as having "the potential to be an important economic contributor to Ohio's local communities."
Helping to spread the word, Audubon Ohio will be the host for workshops over the next three years with leaders in many Ohio communities -- retailers as well as governmental and non-governmental agencies. The workshops will delve into aspects of the trails and festivals program and offer the information necessary to take full advantage of potential economic opportunities.
Great tool: Here is a great tool for some enterprising local community to get in on the ground floor of a project that, forgive the metaphor, kills two birds with one stone: Nature conservation AND economic opportunity. How often can you have both without one being sacrificed for the other? Not often and not easily.
For more information, Audubon Ohio can be contacted at 629 North High St., Suite 208, Columbus, Ohio, 43215-1585. Laura Busby is the Audubon Ohio Birding Trails & amp; Festivals coordinator. She can be contacted at the above address or by phone at (614) 224-3303, ext. 14, or via e-mail at lbusby@audubon.org.