News from Field Guides (December 2019)

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Welcome to the December 2019 Field Guides email! This Southern Double-collared Sunbird, compliments of guide Joe Grosel, reminds us that the holidays are here, a time to give thanks for another amazing year. Everyone at Field Guides wishes you and yours the joy of the season and a peaceful New Year, and we look forward to seeing many of you and birding together this holiday season, in 2020, and beyond. This emailing includes our Nov/Dec 2019 Recent Photos Gallery , short bios on our fantastic guide Marcelo Barreiros and on our miracle-working office manager Karen Turner, birding news & notes, a fun slideshow featuring the much-loved antpittas, a few recently completed itineraries and triplists, and a roster of our 2019 and 2020 tours that still have spaces available. Feeling spontaneous? We do have a few spots open (see below) on holiday-season tours to Panama, Costa Rica, and Brazil, where red-and-green birds (and good cheer) abound!

Birds of a Feather: The Antpittas

In this our final emailing of 2019, we launch a new series: Birds of a Feather . Groups or families of birds will be our focus, hopping from country to country in a survey of some of our tours' signature species and passing along some hopefully interesting tidbits about behavior, identification, and conservation along the way. We kick off this series with our beloved Antpittas , once a group shrouded in mystery, now increasingly better known, thanks to many field studies and to local feeding stations where single birds or even families, like these Jocotoco Antpittas above, venture out into the open. Just this year, in fact, a new species of antpitta was discovered in Colombia, nicknamed Tororoi Bailador, the Dancing Antpitta! We hope you enjoy this spin around the Neotropics, from the perspective of the antpittas. Thanks to participant Kathy Brown for this wonderful inaugural image from our antpitta-rich Southwestern Ecuador Specialties tour!

Guide Gossip: Marcelo Barreiros

Congratulations & cigars are in order for our amazing guide Marcelo Barreiros , who with his wife, Renata, welcomed a little daughter, Lia, into the family last August! Marcelo and family now make their home in Jacareí, northeast of Sao Paulo, not far from very nice Atlantic Forest habitat (and beautiful beaches) and not far from where Marcelo grew up. His path to Field Guides was a winding one. After college (majoring in biology), he earned a two-year fellowship to work with Harpy and Crested eagles in the Amazon Basin, which gave him the chance to travel across much of Brazil. Specifically, he mapped new nests and placed gps/vhf transmitters on the young in order to understand their dispersal from their natal territory. Marcelo writes: "This work immersed me in the entire Amazonian avifauna and in the reality of local communities. When the fellowship ended in 2011, I decided to stay in Manaus and continue working with birds, doing environmental consulting and research." It was in Manaus that Bret Whitney and Marcelo Padua met Marcelo, while they were preparing for the Rio Negro Paradise Tour. After working with Bret for several more years, Marcelo accepted the offer to come to Field Guides full-time. How lucky we are! His upcoming tours in 2020-2021 include a dizzying array of 14 Brazil tours, a Trinidad & Tobago turn, plus the Guyana: Wilderness Paradise tour that makes such a great introduction to the joys of birding in virgin primary rainforest. (Still space available on the March 28 departure!) Participants on Marcelo's tours have sent us glowing words on his outstanding field skills, natural warmth, and logistical legerdemain. Oh, and one more thing: in Brazilian Portuguese, the double 'r' is pronounced more like an 'h' (for those with Spanish or Italian skills who might assume a rolled 'r'), so it's "ba-HEH-ros." It never hurts to get the guide's name right the first time!

Comments from participants

We carefully read each post-tour evaluation we receive from our participants, so that we may continue to offer the best possible birding experiences and service on Field Guides birding tours. Here are a few representative recent comments. From all of us at Field Guides, our thanks for all of your valuable feedback.

"Tom Johnson and Micah Riegner make a great team. They work well together, maintain a good sense of humor, and deal with logistical issues quickly and efficiently. They provided lots of interesting information about each bird and were fun guys to travel with. A big thanks to Tom and Micah for a wonderful experience. There's a lot more of Brazil yet to see, and I think Field Guides has some great itineraries." L.H., RORAIMA ADVENTURE 2019

"An excellent tour. One of the best so far. I prefer Field Guides to most other companies because the focus on birds is world-class and unparalleled AND you elevate all the other things I care about-- culture, history, food, environment, experience, people, etc. Bret Whitney and Marcelo Barreiros are wonderful ambassadors for Brazil. That makes an enormous difference." W.M., BRAZIL'S RIO ROOSEVELT 2019

"It's a wonderful tour. Although it's a short tour, we saw a large number or species and a large number of individual birds. I was amazed we saw all the rails so well. Dan does everything well as a tour leader. He gets us on the birds, has thoughtful and interesting comments about what we are seeing, is patient and good with people, and makes the shared experience a lot of fun. I usually travel with Field Guides. FG trips have been a good fit for how I like to travel and bird--for many years now." A.B. LOUISIANA: YELLOW RAILS & CRAWFISH TAILS 2019

" An excellent experience. Chris Benesh and Cory Gregory are some of the best guides I know ... the creme de la creme. Chris combines amazing birding skills (exceptional bird spotting and knowledge of bird appearance, locations, behavior, and songs) with excellent people and organizational skills. He is smart, witty, kind, respectful, prompt, organized, and was always well prepared for every aspect of the trip. Cory's birding skills are exceptional. His sight and hearing seem super-human, and his knowledge of birds' plumages, songs, and behaviors is top-notch. He is excellent at finding the birds and getting the trip participants 'on' them. He is also a master at the organization and conduct of the trip. It was a pleasure birding with Cory because he is funny, caring, genuine, smart, and helpful. Cory is one of the best. The tour manager's service was excellent." C.G., AUSTRALIA 2019

"The trip was a fantastic experience overall and I would recommend it to others. The diversity of the bird species was amazing. I didn't expect to see so many mountains in Australia, and the terrain in New Guinea was spectacular. Jay VanderGaast does an outstanding job in all aspects of the trip. He tries to ensure that all participants have a chance to see each bird, and is very patient with questions and feedback. I was amazed by his ability to so quickly identify the birds... I would definitely go on another Field Guides trip with Jay in the future. Your office service was excellent." W.K., NEW GUINEA & AUSTRALIA 2019

SPOTLIGHT: Northern South America

Guide Dave Stejskal snapped this Guianan Cock-of-the-rock on a recent Guyana tour.

The wilderness areas of northern South America seemed endless, and daunting, to the first naturalists to set foot there. And to many birders who have cast eyes on Amazonian and Andean birds in field guides, but have not yet visited, this region may still seem daunting. One of the wonderful parts of worry-free birding vacations is that neither avifaunal obscurity, nor flat tire, nor detour, nor gloom of night will stay your guide from making your first visit to the Bird Continent a fun and productive one! Whether you're looking for an introduction to the rainforest on the Guyana: Wilderness Paradise tour, or a search for fascinating endemics, as on the famous Nowhere But Northeast Brazil! tour, or a trip with conservation focus, such as the Southwestern Ecuador Specialties tour (visiting and supporting the Jocotoco Foundation reserves, recently established to protect some of the rarest birds in South America), we have a tour to fit every taste and birding style this winter!

Triplists from recent Field Guides tours

Click on any image or link below to see our annotated and illustrated online triplist . (And be sure also to see our Nov/Dec Recent Photos Gallery for other great images.)

MOUNTAINS OF MANU, PERU

with Dan Lane

OREGON: COAST TO CASCADES

with Cory Gregory

BORNEO

with Dave Stejskal

NORTHEAST INDIA

with Phil Gregory

LOUISIANA: YELLOW RAILS I

with Dan Lane & Ned Brinkley

LOUISIANA: YELLOW RAILS II

with Cory Gregory & Chris Benesh

MOROCCO

with Jesse Fagan

FALL FOR CAPE MAY I

with Cory Gregory

BRAZIL: RORAIMA ADVENTURE

with Micah Riegner & Tom Johnson

BRAZIL'S RIOS MADEIRA & TAPAJOS

with Bret Whitney & Tom Johnson

BRAZIL: RIO NEGRO PARADISE

with Bret Whitney & Marcelo Barreiros

JAGUAR SPOTTING IN BRAZIL II

with Marcelo Padua

Roraima Adventure: Harpy Eagle, anyone?

Meet The Tour Manager: Karen Turner

Karen Turner came to Field Guides as a Tour Manager in January 1995 and became an instant hit with everyone in the company, not least for her ability to figure out solutions to problems large and small--and communicate her ideas with a trademark calm, modest courtesy. Remarkably, her daughter Anna was born in July of the same year, but multi-tasking comes naturally to Karen, who became manager of both the Australia and Alaska tours in her first week of work. "I love the complicated tours, where I have to book everything myself. I love the challenge," she says. And so imagine handling these, plus Papua New Guinea, Lesser Antilles, Thailand, Bhutan, Winter Japan, Tawian, and Vietnam all in one year! In recent years, Karen added new responsibilities as Office Manager, as the company had almost doubled in size since she began. About her quarter century with the company, Karen writes: " I love working at Field Guides--something new is always coming up, so there is never a shortage of things to do, and I am definitely never bored!" (Ever the diplomat, see?) When not captaining the ship at the office, Karen relaxes (so she claims) at home on 4 acres with her donkeys Talulah and Annie and four rescued Australian Shepherds. Karen and her husband, Rich, volunteer with Austin Aussie Rescue and have been rescuing dogs for over 20 years, becoming particularly good with the more "difficult" dogs. Although she would never admit it, even privately, Karen is an incredibly talented chef and artist, favoring acrylic on canvas but enjoying work in many different media. And while she may seem like Polly Purebred, we agree, watch out for April Fool's Day! Karen's sense of humor is always a balm to clients and co-workers, but on that day, a clever prank is not out of bounds. Beware, and mark your calendars!

Tour openings: December through April

Our tours from December 2019 through April 2020 listed below have spaces open. We still have a few holiday spots available, and in the New Year, we welcome you all to come see owls in Alberta, antbirds and parrots in Guyana, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Panama, and Brazil, beautiful island endemics in Puerto Rico and Jamaica, waves of migrants in Texas, the wonders of Asian bird families in India, Japan, and Cambodia, dancing prairie and steppe grouse in Colorado, and lovely spring migrants and nesting birds in Hungary, Israel, and Portugal. Contact our office to request space on any of these tours.

Brazil Paradise Revisited: Birding t he Remote Upper Rio Negro, Dec 17-27, with Bret Whitney (1 space)
Holiday Costa Rica: Rancho Naturalista I, Dec 21-29, with Dan Lane & local guide (spaces open)
Panama's Canopy Camp: Lowland Darien, Dec 27-Jan 4, with John Coons & local guide (1 space)
Panama's Canopy Lodge: El Valle de Anton, Dec 28-Jan 4, with Jesse Fagan (3 spaces)
Northern India: Birds, Tiger & the Taj Mahal, Jan 11-31, with Terry Stevenson & Tom Johnson (1 space)
Winter Japan: Dancing Cranes & Spectacular Sea-Eagles, Jan 17-Feb 1, with Phil Gregory (1 space)
Nowhere but Northeast Brazil! Jan 21-Feb 7, with Bret Whitney & Marcelo Barreiros (3 spaces)
Panama's Canopy Tower, Feb 2-8, with John Coons (4 spaces)
Central Mexico & Baja, Feb 7-19, with Jesse Fagan & Micah Riegner (1 space)
Trinidad & Tobago, Feb 8-17, with Tom Johnson (1 space)
Cambodia: Angkor Temples & Vanishing Birds, Feb 12-27, with Doug Gochfeld & local guide (1 space)
Owlberta: Alberta's Owls & More, Feb 15-21, with Jay VanderGaast (spaces open)
Southeast Ecuador: Orange-throated Tanager & Foothill Specialties, Feb 22-Mar 2, with Mitch Lysinger (2 spaces)
Colombia: Santa Marta Escape, Feb 22-Mar 1, with Cory Gregory (1 space)
Jamaica, Feb 23-29, with Eric Hynes (1 space)
Southwestern Ecuador Specialties: Jocotoco Foundation Reserves, Mar 1-15, with Willy Perez (spaces open)
Spring in South Texas, Mar 7-15, with Chris Benesh (3 spaces)
Brazil Nutshell: Intervales, Iguazu Falls, & the Pantanal, Mar 7-21, with Marcelo Padua (2 spaces)
Classic Costa Rica, Mar 10-25, with Jay VanderGaast & local guide (spaces open)
Puerto Rico, Mar 15-21, with Tom Johnson & Cory Gregory (4 spaces)
Mexico: Oaxaca II, Mar 26-Apr 2, with Doug Gochfeld & Jorge Montejo-Diaz (1 space)
Belize: Tropical Birding, Short and Sweet, Mar 28-Apr 4, with Jesse Fagan & local guide (2 spaces)
Guyana: Wilderness Paradise II, Mar 28-Apr 8, with Marcelo Barreiros & local guide (4 spaces)
Bhutan, Apr 4-23, with Megan Edwards Crewe & Jay VanderGaast (1 space)
Colorado Grouse I, Apr 8-18, with Tom Johnson & Micah Riegner (4 spaces)
Texas Coast Migration Spectacle I, Apr 11-17, with John Coons (4 spaces)
Colorado Grouse II, Apr 13-24, with Cory Gregory (spaces open)
Texas Coast Migration Spectacle II, Apr 18-24, with John Coons (spaces open)
Northeast India: Eaglenest, Kaziranga & More, Apr 18-May 5, with Phil Gregory (spaces open)
Israel Migration Magic, Apr 21-May 5, with Doug Gochfeld (4 spaces)
Brazil -- Roraima Adventure: Birding the Sky Islands of the Amazon, Apr 22-May 3 with Micah Riegner & Tom Johnson (spaces open)
Hungary & Romania: The Best of Eastern Europe, Apr 25-May 11, with Terry Stevenson & Lajos Nemeth-Boka (1 space)
Beyond the Ports of Portugal: A Birds & Wine Tour, Apr 28-May 9, with Marcelo Padua & local guide (3 spaces)
Arizona Nightbirds & More I, Apr 30-May 4, with Cory Gregory (1 space)

Birding & conservation: news & updates

We read our share of bad news these days, but there are many bits of good news worth sharing, for instance on habitat resilience and restoration. Our tours travel to many places in the Caribbean Basin, including Puerto Rico and Belize , which have suffered from a series of severe hurricanes in this century. However, conservationists working in governments and NGOs have been hard at work, studying the changes to the habitats, reforesting sites where storms have impacted endangered species, and also purchasing large tracts of land to slow the loss of habitat and encourage recovery of damaged habitats. Our tours to these areas continue to have success in locating the specialty species, and we find that local people are especially grateful for our visits--often, we birders are among the first tourists to return following setbacks such as storms. In western Ecuador , deforestation has been halted in several key areas identified by conservationists, including the very vulnerable Chocó ecoregion of the Pacific foothills, where threatened species such as the Banded Ground-Cuckoo above persist. Our visits to places with ongoing conservation projects are heartening for us and helpful to the work of local conservationists, and we often lodge right where conservation work is happening--contributing much-needed funds in these magical places. (Thanks to guide Rose Ann Rowlett for the photo. Click the ground-cuckoo link or image to practice your Spanish--or use Google's Chrome to translate into a funky mess!)

Recently posted 2020 itineraries

Click on any image or link below to see the detailed itinerary for the following 2020 tours. All of these itineraries are packed with information (and have a few nice photos as well!).