We lead birding and natural history tours for small groups in North America including Washington, Or
(6)
ONE SPACE LEFT! Meet me in central Oregon next spring for my signature tour visiting Malheur & the East Cascades, May 16-25. We'll spend 4 nights at Malheur and 5 in Sisters, with soooo much to see. BUT, there's only one space left on this tour! Here are a few highlights from 2024. Contact Naturalist Journeys, LLC to grab that last spot.
RANCHO PRIMAVERA BUTTERFLIES: So far, the butterfly highlight at Rancho Primavera has been this spectacular Bluemark (Lasaia callaina) that doesn't yet have a common name. It was once considered a subspecies of the Black-patched Bluemark (Lasaia agesilas), but it seems to now be regarded as a full species. There are only a few dozen iNaturalist records from Mexico to Nicaragua.
ELUSIVE TINAMOUS: A Thicket Tinamou is calling right outside our bedroom window, but we can not see the damn thing. If you've ever birded in the Tropics, you know about the elusive tinamous. They typically stay frustratingly hidden in the forest, on rare occasions walking right in front of you on the trail.
These photos show a Gray Tinamou that we saw on my tour to southern Ecuador with Naturalist Journeys,. The only reason we saw this bird is that the staff at Copalinga Lodge feed the bird once a day, much to the delight of visiting birders.
Tinamous are part of an ancient "infraclass" of birds known as the Palaeognathae, which includes the ostriches, emus, and kiwis. The tinamous are the only flying members of the group, and they only occur in the Neotropics (New World Tropics). The Thicket Tinamou occurs farther north than any other member of the family.
PILEATED: You've been looking for this beast for days. You've checked all your favorite spots. You've reached the last morning of the tour. Then, in the final 10 minutes at the last stop before you head to the airport, you hear the bird. It's close. It flies across the creek, but you are the only one who sees it. It can't end like this. You grab your group and rush into the big stand of conifers. And there he is. In all his glory. One of the world's largest woodpeckers. Bigger than life.
Woodpecker Wonderland tour with Naturalist Journeys,. Join me next spring, May 16-25, to celebrate my 28th year of chasing woodpeckers. Only a few spaces left! https://bit.ly/4fgKMRV
BorneoMonkey Babies: Oct. 2024 - https://mailchi.mp/49705b49c822/naturalistjourneysborneo2024
RUTA CABO CORRIENTES: Lizzy and I had a great time exploring Cabo Corrientes today. New roads, lots of birds (101 species, and we didn't start 'til noon!), great habitat, and gorgeous weather. Come visit and we'll show you around!
Here's the bird report and map for the day:
https://ebird.org/tripreport/222125?view=checklists
TARCOLES ROAD, COSTA RICA: This amazing rural road near the town and river of Tarcoles produced a startling variety of birds. This was one of our first stops as part of my recent "Monteverde and More" tour of Costa Rica with Naturalist Journeys, LLC. Here are a just a few of the highlights.
PYGMY FLASHBACK: I found this fledgling Northern Pygmy-Owl in Lee Vining Canyon (California's eastern Sierra Nevada) in June 2022. Across the creek were its nest-mate and one of its parents. This outing was part of my woodpecker ramblings with the Mono Lake Committee that summer. I will miss Mono Lake this year.
I'm attending the Oaxaca Bird Festival this week, in cooperation with the annual meeting of Programa de Aves Urbanas (PAU). It's a great event, with over 200 people attending from all over Mexico and beyond. Official birding trips start tomorrow morning!
Observaciones de aves, talleres, ponencias, proyección de documentales y bicipajareadas son las actividades que tendremos en el festival.
BORNEO ENDEMICS, DAY 1: We just started my Wild Borneo tour with , and we found 14 Bornean endemics on the first day! It was a great day in the Crocker Range. Tomorrow, were off to Mt. Kinabalu. Stay tuned!
SWINHOE'S PHEASANT: Just one of about 30 endemic species in Taiwan. Join me next spring as I lead our inaugural tour with
https://conta.cc/45Bq4XG
MEADOW & MOUNTAINS: Glaze Meadow, two of the Three Sisters, and Broken Top. Nice day to be outside scouting for my upcoming photo tour of Woodpecker Wonderland with Naturalist Journeys, LLC .
TWO ORCHIDS: At Silver Falls State Park this weekend, I was reacquainted with an old friend and made a very special new friend. Yes, I have orchids for friends: the Calypso and the Twayblade. The latter is the tiniest orchid I have ever seen.
Birding in Wild Borneo: Sept. 2023 - https://mailchi.mp/df788606902e/naturalistjourneysborneo2023
Join me this fall on the world's third-largest island! Endemic flora and fauna abound in Borneo, including Earth's oldest rainforest. Here is my latest newsletter, with links to photos, videos, and the complete tour itinerary.
RESPLENDENT: Some call it the most beautiful bird in the world. Whatever you call it, the Resplendent Quetzal is a spectacular bird. These pics are from my March tour to Costa Rica's Monteverde cloud forest with .
WELCOME BACK! Just arrived in Jamaica; my 5th trip to the island and 2nd with Naturalist Journeys, LLC. Red Stripe, jerk spices, and reggae. They're all here. Ah yes, and nearly 30 endemic bird species. Our tour officially starts tomorrow night, but I thought I'd settle into island life a little early. Hail up!
BOSQUE LA PRIMAVERA: Spent a great day birding the Primavera Forest on my recent visit to Guadalajara. Special thanks to Manuel and Andre for showing us around their big backyard!
MILES OF BIRDS: I'm sitting in Seattle on my final air flight of 2022, on my way home. I will end the year with over 75,000 air miles; closer to 90,000, actually, but that's a longer story. On my travels this year, I visited 6 countries and 8 states, having led 17 birding tours, and I made several personal visits to Texas and Mexico. I also attended 5 bird festivals. From sea level to 15,000 feet, I found about 1,200 bird species, more than 120 of which were new for me.
Thanks to all of my friends, family, clients, and colleagues for helping me through my busiest year ever. I will not likely have another one like 2022. It's just not sustainable to stay this busy. But it was an adventure. And I hope to see you in 2023.
FROGS' HEAVEN: This cool little nature preserve pulled out all the stops for us today on our Christmas in Costa Rica tour with Naturalist Journeys, LLC. Not only did we see some wicked-cool frogs, but we also saw the monster of Costa Rican woodpeckers and the world's cutest bats! A great day in the lowland rainforest.
HUMMER MANIA! Can you name all these birds?! Just another day in the Andes of southern Ecuador.
BAMBOO: This is just one of 180 bamboo species in Ecuador. Seen on the Jocotoco Antpitta trail in Tapichalaca Reserve, Chinchipe, Ecuador.
CRANES: 30 seconds of crane-ness. The nonmigratory "Florida" subspecies of Sandhill Crane. Florida Birding and Nature Festival, Apollo Beach, FL.
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker feeding at and tending xylem wells in a cassuarina tree; Guadalajara Zoo, Jalisco, MX.
Botteri's Sparrow sputtering his little heart out. These guys were singing all over the place outside of Tapalpa, Jalisco, MX. Video taken handheld at 10x zoom with my Galaxy S21 Ultra.
MOUNTAIN CARACARA: Seen on my birthday trip in 2021 somewhere near Cajamarca, Peru. What surprises await for my return?!
The Cedar Creek fire is burning on the west side of Waldo Lake, about 50 mi. to the south. The location portends optimal Three-toed and Black-backed Woodpecker habitat for the next few years. Lightning fire; 17k ac.; 12% contained.
Canyon tree frog at The Nature Conservancy's Ramsey Cyn Preserve, Sierra Vista, AZ.
Dall's Porpoises cruising along with our boat off Westport, WA. Just one of many highlights from our recent tour to the WA coast.
7 seconds of bumblebee happiness. Yellow-faced Bumblebee on thistle. Big Creek Fish Hatchery, Astoria, OR.
Arizona Sister on Leica binos. Ramsey Canyon Preserve, se. AZ.
| Monday | 09:00 - 17:00 |
| Tuesday | 09:00 - 17:00 |
| Wednesday | 09:00 - 17:00 |
| Thursday | 09:00 - 17:00 |
| Friday | 09:00 - 17:00 |
| Saturday | 09:00 - 17:00 |
| Sunday | 09:00 - 17:00 |
Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Paradise Birding posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.
Send a message to Paradise Birding:
2023 Christmas present! We watched these unwary quail foraging right next to the Savegre Lodge in Costa Rica's Talamanca Mountains. Holiday tour last year with @naturalistjourneys . #birdingwithlizzy #naturalistjourneys #birdingcostarica #savegrelodge #woodquail #tropicalholiday #talamancacordillera
Ten seconds of motmotness. Turn up the volume. Russet-crowned Motmot, Rancho Primavera, Mexico. #ranchoprimavera #cabocorrientes #neotropicalbirds #jaliscobirdingtours #vallartabirdingtours #birdingwithlizzy #motmots #birdingmexico #birdsofjalisco #jaliscomexico #backyardbirds
Yep, that's a male Red-crowned Ant-Tanager eating an apple slice in my backyard. Nice yard bird. Come to Rancho Primavera and let us show you around! This guy is just one of the many gems on the ranch. #ranchoprimavera #cabocorrientes #jaliscobirdingtours #birdingwithlizzy #vallartabirdingtours #neotropicalbirds
BAIRD'S TAPIR: So, were trying to have dinner at the aptly named Tapirus Lodge, in Costa Rica, when one of the staff shouts (quietly) "tapir, tapir." And below the restaurant, this adult and immature tapir saunter by on their nightly feeding round. Amazing experience! @naturalistjourneys
WHITE-HEADED! It's been years since we've had a White-headed Woodpecker at my house, so what a nice treat on this blustery fall evening. Happy woodpecker watching. 😁 #whiteheadedwoodpecker #woodpeckerwonderland #birdingoregon #birdingsisters #mademyday
PITCHING IN: These boys were part of the port scene at the Kota Kinabalu waterfront the other day, slinging the fuel cans to the dock after a long morning of fishing. Sabah, Malaysian Borneo. During my free days after leading a 15-day tour for @NaturalistJourneys. #kotakinabalu #lifeinmalaysia #lifeinborneo #thelocalscene #fishingforaliving #mydaysoff #malaysianborneo #sabahtourism #naturalistjourneys
STORM'S STORK: The rarest of all storks, with less than 500 individuals remaining. We saw this pair one morning while cruising the Kinabatangan River in Malaysian Borneo. Just one of many highlights during my recent "Wild Borneo" tour with @naturalistjourneys .
PROBOSCIS BREAKFAST: Yesterday morning, we enjoyed watching this Bornean endemic proboscis monkey on the Kinabatangan River. Amazing experience. Part of my current Wild Borneo tour with @naturalistjourneys. #proboscismonkey #wildborneo #birdingborneo #kinabatanganriver #naturalistjourneys
This little Cinnamon-rumped Seedeater has been singing his heart out all day, every day at my AirBnB in northern Gaudalajara. He just doesn't stop. Such dedication! Or is it just compulsion?!
Cold, windy summer morning at Mt. Hood, as seen from Timberline Lodge. Part of my Great Cascade Lodges tour with @naturalistjourneys. #mounthood #birdingoregon #NaturalistJourneys #brisksummermorning
Juvenile male Hairy Woodpecker stopping for a preening bout. Wildwood Rec Area on the west flank of Mt. Hood, OR. Captured during my Great Cascades Lodges tour with @naturalistjourneys.
WOODPECKER MANIA! My tour to Woodpecker Wonderland was a great success, thanks a great group of clients and my coleader, Pat Lueders. We found 10 woodpecker species, with many birds at active nests. Join me next year with @naturalistjourneys .
Sixteen seconds of serenity. Sugar Spring on the Metolius River, near Camp Sherman, OR. #metolius #lavasprings #campsherman
SNAIL KITE MANIA: Perhaps you have seen Snail Kites before, in Florida, Mexico, or elsewhere. I too had seen my share of Snail Kites, but I was flabbergasted by this concentration of birds near Guayaquil, Ecuador. Nearly every single bird you see in this video is a Snail Kite! And they continued back a ways from the birds in the front. We estimated hundreds, but it easily could have been thousands. Seen on my November tour to southern Ecuador with @naturalistjourneys.
HUMMER MANIA! Can you name all these birds?! Just another day in the Andes of southern Ecuador. #NaturalistJourneys #hummermania #birdingecuador
CRANES: 30 seconds of crane-ness. The nonmigratory "Florida" subspecies of Sandhill Crane. Florida Birding and Nature Festival, Apollo Beach, FL. #floridabirdfestival #crazycranes #sandhills
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker feeding at and tending xylem wells in a cassuarina tree; Guadalajara Zoo, Jalisco, MX. #globalbigday #sapsuckers #birdingwithlizzy
Botteri's Sparrow sputtering his little heart out. These guys were singing all over the place outside of Tapalpa, Jalisco, MX. Video taken handheld at 10x zoom with my Galaxy S21 Ultra. #birdinginmexico #birdingwithlizzy #pueblosmagicos
Want your business to be the top-listed Travel Agency?
