News from Field Guides (New Year 2020)

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Happy New Year ! And welcome to the New Year's first emailing. We hope that your 2020 has begun with some superb birding already, and we look forward to birding with you in this new year and new decade. To get 2020 off on the right foot, we want to thank you for being a friend of Field Guides, first and foremost, and to express our appreciation for your participation, your patronage, and your friendship. This company has grown steadily since 1985, and it's all thanks to you. In 2020, we pledge to work harder than ever to help you realize your birding dreams. Now, where might those dreams take you? We know that selecting a tour can be a challenge (with so many great destinations), so spin the globe in your imagination and see where it lands. South America? Central America? We have a dozen tours with open spaces to the Wonderland of the Neotropics between now and May, some of them very relaxed in pace, some of them brisk--something for everyone. Perhaps it's time for a life-changing Kenyan Safari with our one-of-a-kind Terry Stevenson, a guide who could make even a turtle laugh? Or an adventure in the mountains of Northeast India , with Phil Gregory--and hopes for Tiger and Great Indian Rhinoceros? Or is this the year for Alaska or the Galapagos ? This emailing has plenty of food for thought, including our January Recent Photos Gallery with the latest news on just-completed tours from Europe, Africa, South America, and Australia, and our usual smorgasbord of triplists and new itineraries. Wherever your globe stops spinning, we'd love to be your company again this year! (Thanks to guide Doug Gochfeld for the adorable Red Warbler from Oaxaca !)

Birds of a Feather: The Eagles

Our second feature in the new series Birds of a Feather focuses on eagles , or, more precisely, on raptors that have "eagle" in the name. Our series is partly an excuse to jump from continent to continent and enjoy some of the highlights from past (and future) tours, but we hope to provide some "big picture" on these big raptors, too, and a few finer points about their biology, behavior, identification, and taxonomy. Eagles, of many stripes, are found on almost 95% of our tours, and they're usually huge and impressive, so they make excellent ambassadors for their respective tours. It's always a good day to see an eagle. So sit back with a cocoa, tea, or coffee and take a virtual trip with us on a quest for eagles!

Galapagos 2020: Birding Paradise

Is 2020 the year when your biological clock will finally say: It's time to see the Galapagos ? Mitch Lysinger has a few spots left on his July 6-16 tour, and he would love to show you the wonders of Darwin's islands. Cool off in style this summer with penguins, albatrosses, boobies, tropicbirds, frigatebird, giant tortoises--and those finches you've heard so much about--all while based on a well-appointed yacht! (Thanks to Linda Rudolph for the fine photo of the Great Frigatebird.)

Guide Gossip: The Half-Acre Project!

If you’re like most of us, you probably keep a list of the birds that you’ve seen in your yard. You could probably make a list of the mammals, reptiles, and amphibians you’ve seen there too. But guide Megan Edwards Crewe and her husband Mike are taking their yard-listing in Norfolk, England to another level entirely. Inspired by a woman in Leicester who found more than 2600 species on her suburban plot over a 30-year period, they’ve set out to document every species that occurs in their half-acre, rural garden. That means putting a name to every plant, insect, fungus, mollusk, and arthropod as well as all the “regular stuff,” and it’s proving to be quite the challenge. So far, in their first year of effort in what they call their Half-Acre Project , they’ve tallied more than 850 species, including a number that are new for their corner of England. (All records, with photographs, are being entered into the U.K.’s National Biodiversity Network records database, so that they can be used by the scientific community.) They’ve also had scores of species they haven’t yet been able to put a name to. “Bees are tough,” Megan says. “So are hoverflies! Before we started this project, I had no idea there were so many.” She confesses to having spent many hours flat on her stomach in the garden, watching and photographing the tiny denizens that had escaped her notice in previous years. And she adds that she can now identify far more of the plants and insects that are common across Europe--certainly a boon for anybody who travels with her to Britain , France , or Greece ! Check out the Half-Acre blog (and maybe start your own project in this New Year?)!

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.

" This was a wonderful experience! Five gold stars. Great leaders in Godfried Schreur and Jay VanderGaast, a beautiful country, many new birds, paintings by Vermeer. I know I can expect an excellent experience from Field Guides." B.K., HOLLAND: BIRDS & ART 2019

"An excellent experience. Fine birds, lodging, food, and wonderful mammals in Kruger. I enjoy tours that provide a wide view of a country or region. This one certainly did that without having too many internal flights or travel days without birding. Each area that we saw was different and interesting. This was our third tour with Jesse Fagan, and we hope to do more with him. This was our first time with Joe Grosel, and we really enjoyed his relaxed approach." R.S., SOUTH AFRICA 2019

"I'd long heard about this fabulous trip! And Terry Stevenson is my favorite guide. The tour was wonderful! Looking forward to my upcoming trips with Field Guides (Myanmar, Angola, Galapagos, and Ecuador...)" G.K., NAMIBIA & BOTSWANA II 2019

"I very much enjoyed the whole tour. Willy Perez was an excellent guide, he showed us many outstanding and beautiful birds, and Chile is a most scenic country--I especially enjoyed the south, the Andes, and the desert. I have talked to Willy about joining him on one of his other tours, possibly in Ecuador. In addition to being an excellent birder, he was friendly, energetic, and welcoming. Christine Boilard in your office was most helpful and efficient." R.C., CHILE 2019

SPOTLIGHT: Spring Migration!

The season many of us wait for impatiently is just around the corner: the dramatic return of spring migrants to the northern hemisphere. Some of our guides are such spring migration fanatics that one has to be careful even mentioning the phenomenon--they have to sit down and breathe deeply to regain composure. Brilliant birds in breeding plumages, and often in full song: what's not to adore? And so we have a dozen tours designed to connect you with these beauties, at just the right time and place. In the US, we have spaces open on both our grand Texas Coast Migration Spectacle and our Spring in South Texas tours, as well as Spring in Cape May and Florida , all sure to be peppered with migrants of many stripes. In the Old World, our tours with migrants are simply incredible. It's impossible for any tour to hold a candle to the world-class Israel Migration Magic tour, with its sheer volume and diversity of migrants (not to mention the birds are so easy to see in arid habitats there!). And both our Spain: La Mancha, Coto Donana & Extremadura and our Beyond the Ports of Portugal: A Birds & Wine tour also offer fine opportunities to see the northward push of birds from Africa into temperate zones of Europe and beyond, with many other enticements as well. Thanks to guide Doug Gochfeld for the inspirational image of a migrating Black Stork from the Israel tour!

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 January Recent Photos Gallery for other great images.)

FALL FOR CAPE MAY II

with Tom Johnson & Mandy Talpas

SOUTH AFRICA

with Joe Grosel and Jesse Fagan

ALASKA FALL GOLDMINE: BARROW

with Doug Gochfeld

ALASKA FALL GOLDMINE: PRIBILOFS

with Doug Gochfeld

LOUISIANA: YELLOW RAILS (PRIVATE)

with Dane Lane & Doug Hitchcox

FRANCE: CAMARGUE & PYRENEES II

with Jay VanderGaast

NEW GUINEA & AUSTRALIA

with Jay VanderGaast

BRAZIL: RIO NEGRO PARADISE II

with Marcelo Barreiros & Dave Stejskal

MACHU PICCHU & ABRA MALAGA II

with Dan Lane

COLOMBIA: CALI ESCAPE

with Jesse Fagan & Daniel Uribe

BRAZIL'S RIO ROOSEVELT

with Bret Whitney & Marcelo Barreiros

THANKSGIVING IN JAMAICA

with Cory Gregory

JAMAICA IV (PRIVATE TOUR)

with Cory Gregory

NAMIBIA & BOTSWANA II

with Terry Stevenson

THE MIGHTY MOUTH OF THE AMAZON

with Marcelo Padua

BRAZIL'S JAPURA AND TEFE RIVERS: MAMIRAUA, AMANA, & THE UNKNOWN

with Bret Whitney & Micah Riegner

Unknown Amazonia with Bret: Spots Open!

This happens every blue moon, as they say: our new Brazil's Japura & Tefe Rivers: Mamiraua, Amana & the Unknown tour has had a schedule shift this year, from winter to summer, and so we have a few (rare!) open spaces on one of these Great Rivers of the Amazon tours with Bret Whitney , whose explorations of the deep Amazonian rainforests continue to gobsmack birders and ornithologists alike. Bret will be seconded by our astonishing (you won't believe his eyes and ears) Micah Riegner , whose years of experience in Amazonian tributaries will come in handy. And both will be capably assisted by a trusted team of local guides, boatmen, chefs, and bartenders, to make for oh-so-smooth sailing. So if the idea of live-aboard luxury in virtually unexplored places appeals to you, and you have the dates July 30-August 13 free this year, contact our office to learn more about this opportunity. And oh, check out the well-illustrated triplist here from our pilot run of this itinerary just last month. A fascinating area!

Happy news from Holland: New habitats flourish

Godfried Schreur and Jay VanderGaast report that their Birds & Art: Waterfowl Spectacle & Dutch Masters tour was great fun last month, not just for birds but for the chance to see a country that has made great strides in "greening" its cities and in providing new habitat for all kinds of wildlife. From the bee-friendly bus stops of Utrecht to massive artificial islands for nesting birds , the Netherlands has been at the forefront of the "re-wilding Europe" movement for years. The success in creating new habitat on a massive scale at Marker Wadden is thrilling: 2200 pairs of nesting Common Terns, 15 pairs of Little Terns, and 250 pairs of Pied Avocets, among many other species of waterbird. And in 2019, the Netherlands became the first country to have no stray dogs , a remarkable accomplishment that took many years of hard work and smart policymaking. Happily, these Dutch initiatives are catching on all across Europe. Just this year, London became the first European city to plant a seven-mile long bee corridor . And in Finland , where Field Guides will return in 2021 with a new spring tour, scientists at the University of Helsinki have developed a new bee vaccine , to help combat the diseases that have decimated bees worldwide. Many thanks to participant Mary Deutsche for the evocative image of a Dutch windmill--it looks almost like a painting!

Tour openings: January through May

Our tours from January through May 2020 listed below have spaces open. In this bright New Year, we welcome all to come see owls in Alberta, parrots and antbirds and cotingas in Guyana, Ecuador, Trinidad, Panama, Costa Rica, and Brazil, waves of migrants on the Texas coast and at wonderful Cape May, dancing prairie and steppe grouse in Colorado, and lovely spring migrants and nesting birds in Israel, Spain, Portugal, and Hungary & Romania. Or is 2020 your year for a spectacular safari in Kenya, an adventure through Mongolia or Northeast India--or that epic pilgrimage to the great state of Alaska you've been putting off? Contact our office to request space on any of these tours.

Northern India: Birds, Tiger & the Taj Mahal, Jan 11-31, with Terry Stevenson & Tom Johnson (1 space)
Nowhere but Northeast Brazil!, Jan 21-Feb 7, with Bret Whitney & Marcelo Barreiros (1 space)
Panama's Canopy Tower, Feb 2-8, with John Coons (2 spaces)
Central Mexico & Baja: Birds, Butterflies & Whales, Feb 7-19, with Jesse Fagan & Micah Riegner (2 spaces)
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 & Dan Arndt (4 spaces)
Southeast Ecuador: Orange-throated Tanager & Foothill Specialties, Feb 22-Mar 2, with Mitch Lysinger (1 space)
Colombia: Santa Marta Escape, Feb 22-Mar 1, with Cory Gregory (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 (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 (2 spaces)
Bhutan, Apr 4-23, with Megan Edwards Crewe & Jay VanderGaast (1 space)
Colorado Grouse I, Apr 8-18, with Tom Johnson & Micah Riegner (3 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 (4 spaces)
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 II: 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)
Spain: La Mancha, Coto Doñana & Extremadura, May 2-14, with Chris Benesh & Godfried Schreur (3 spaces)
Arizona Nightbirds & More II, May 7-11, with Dave Stejskal (2 spaces)
Arizona: Birding the Border I, May 8-17, with John Coons (1 space)
Florida, May 9-18, with Doug Gochfeld & Micah Riegner (2 spaces)
Colombia: Medellin Escape, May 9-20, with Jesse Fagan & local guide (spaces open)
Spring in Cape May, May 10-16, with Tom Johnson (spaces open)
Arizona: Birding the Border II, May 15-24, with Dave Stejskal (3 spaces)
Brazil -- Minas Gerais & Tocantins: Blue-eyed Ground-Dove & Beyond, May 23-Jun 8, with Marcelo Barreiros (spaces open)
Montane Ecuador: Cloudforests of the Andes, May 29-Jun 7, with Mitch Lysinger (1 space)
Kenya Safari Spectacular, May 29-Jun 22, with Terry Stevenson (spaces open)
Northern Arizona's Canyons & Condor, May 30-Jun 5, with John Coons (2 spaces)
Alaska Part One: The Pribilofs, Anchorage & Denali, May 30-Jun 8, with Chris Benesh & Doug Gochfeld (spaces open)

Breaking news: Northern owls invade!

With winter weather settling in, and temperatures dropping below the freezing mark, things are starting to heat up for birding in Alberta. Guide Jay VanderGaast recently chatted with Dan Arndt, his co-leader on the Owlberta: Alberta’s Owls & More tour, and learned that the owl flight is already very good! Snowy Owls showed up early and in excellent numbers this winter, and numerous reports of Great Gray Owls are coming in from the two main areas the tour will visit. And even those fickle Northern Hawk Owls are arriving, with one setting up shop within the Calgary city limits! Short-eared Owls, Great Horned Owls, and a few Northern Pygmy-Owls round out the roster. Jay and Dan still have room on this great Canadian winter adventure—a good tour for northerners like Boreal Chickadee, Gyrfalcon, Northern Goshawk, Rough-legged Hawk, Bohemian Waxwing, White-winged Crossbill, Pine Grosbeak, and Gray Partridge, too. If you haven't yet tried Canada in winter with two cool Canadians, you don't know what fun you're missing. Bring a tuque!

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!).