Age Group | Away-from-Home | Around-the-Home |
16 to 17 | 1.0m | 1.5m |
18 to 24 | 2.6m | 4.4m |
25 to 34 | 3.3m | 10.3m |
35 to 44 | 4.3m | 10.6m |
45 to 54 | 3.0m | 16.2m |
55 to 64 | 5.4m | 20.1m |
>= 65 | 4.0m | 18.0m |
Age Group | Away-from-Home | Around-the-Home |
16 to 17 | 11% | 18% |
18 to 24 | 9% | 16% |
25 to 34 | 8% | 23% |
35 to 44 | 11% | 26% |
45 to 54 | 7% | 38% |
55 to 64 | 13% | 48% |
>= 65 | 8% | 37% |
Recent articles published by the New York Times and on the National Audubon Society’s website state that the birding community is getting younger and becoming more diverse. Market research by The National Audubon Society has identified 9 million people between the ages of 18 and 35 “who share that blend of an interest in birds and environmental activism.” Source: Birdwatchingdaily
There are a great number of clubs, groups and events popping up that are specifically aimed at the younger generation, for example e-Bird’s For Young Birders event which aims to bring together teenagers with a passion for birds and interested in pursuing a career in the field. Also enticing the younger set is the rise of technology; apps that keep track of birders’ checklists and rank users against each other, as well as online communities such as Birda and BirdFellow.
See also: What animal has the largest eyes
Birdwatching age distribution according to the 2016 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service survey
The 2016 National Survey of Fishing, Hunting, and Wildlife-Associated Recreation undertaken by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the latest survey available from the US. In the 2016 survey, birders fit into the ‘Wildlife Watchers’ category. There are two groups of ‘Wildlife Watchers’. The first is defined as ‘Around-The-Home Wildlife Watchers’ and the second as ‘Away-From-Home Wildlife Watchers’.
Around-The-Home Wildlife Watchers
In 2016, the US population of people 16 years or older was nearly 255 million and of those, 32 percent wildlife watched around their homes. Of these 43.8 million Around-the-Home wildlife watchers, 38.5 million or 88% of them watched birds (see chart below). Therefore, it is fair to say that Around-the-Home wildlife watchers are representative of the Around-the-Home birdwatching population.



Away-From-Home Wildlife Watchers


