KENNEBUNK — Go outside, look up and listen. This time of year, you may see or hear a black-capped chickadee — the Maine state bird — or spy the vibrant red of a male northern cardinal.

Birding — watching and identifying birds and listening for bird calls, in 2013, ranked as the 15th most popular outdoor recreation activity in the United States, according to Nature Travel Network.

These days, some local birders are looking to broaden the appeal of the hobby by attracting  young people — establishing the Maine Young Birders Cub in southern Maine.

The fledgling club, which will host its first bird walk at Timber Point, part of the Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge in Biddeford, on March 25. The club is sponsored by York County Audubon and has the support of the state and national Audubon societies, organizers say.

One of the organizers, Nathan Hall, said the club is aimed at young people from about 11 years old to 18 years old in York and Cumberland counties.

Hall himself was a birder when he was younger, took a break from it, he said in a recent interview, and got back into the hobby five or six years ago.

“There’s not a lot of young people involved in birding these days,” said Hall. So he and fellow birder Lena Moser, who is also an organizer of the Maine Young Birders Club, are looking for a good turnout for the March inaugural meeting.

Hall, who is a teacher at Middle School of the Kennebunks, said birding is the perfect way for young people to spend time outdoors.

“There’s been a lot of research in the last 10 years talking abut nature deficit disorder with kids spending so much time inside,” said Hall. “They know more about Pokemon than the birds in their back yard.”

To learn more about the club, young people — both birders and those who interested in the hobby — should contact Lena Moser or Nathan Hall at maineyoungbirders@gmail.com.

— Senior Staff Writer Tammy Wells can be contacted at 324-4444 (local call in Sanford) or 282-1535, ext. 327 or twells@journaltribune.com.