| IN THE NEWS | BIRDING SITES | FEATURE BIRD | BIRDING PEOPLE |
Welcome to Guyana Birding News,
We're pleased to bring you the seventh edition of the newsletter sponsored by www.guyanabirding.com. We hope you'll find this publication full of interesting information and useful resources for planning your next birding adventure to the unspoiled wilderness of Guyana.
As always, we welcome your comments and suggestions about how to improve both our newsletter and our website. For those of you who have traveled to Guyana, we invite you to send your trip reports, photos and tips for birding in Guyana.
Happy Birding!
IN THIS ISSUE
IN THE NEWS: All the latest news about Guyana birding and tourism
BIRDING SITES: Surama Village
FEATURE BIRD: Antibirds of Guyana
BIRDING PEOPLE: Asaph Wilson, Birding Guide
IN THE NEWS
In November 2008, Guyana's British High Commission (BHC) launched a new good practices checklist aimed at influencing and helping tour operators, lodges and guides to integrate key environmental and social practices into their birding tours. The Birding Tours Self-Assessment Checklist: A Practical Guide for Good Environmental and Social Practices is the first of its kind in the world, and positions Guyana as an international leader in sustainable birding tourism development. . . more>>
The Educational Travel Community (ETC) has named Surama Eco-Lodge as their 2009 Responsible Tourism Showcase Honoree. On the selection of Surama as the award winner, ETC said, "There were some outstanding applications this year and the selection process was quite difficult, which speaks even more highly to the merit of Surama Eco-Lodge's responsible tourism programming." . . more>>
Guyana Media Round-up
Whether they appear in magazines, blogs or websites, we've been pleased lately by the plethora of words and photographs touting Guyana's beauty. For your browsing pleasure, we've provided a recap with links. . . more>>
Discovering Guyana Evening at Royal Geographical Society
In December, the UK's esteemed Royal Geographical Society hosted a well-attended Discovering Guyana evening. Set up in a casual question-and-answer format, the evening offered independent, expert views to those wishing to travel to Guyana. . . more>>
Guyana Receives Glowing Praise from Tourism Familiarization Tour Participants
In November, a group of eight international tour guides, journalists, and optics company representatives toured Guyana on a birdwatching, natural history, and culture tourism familiarization trip sponsored by the Guyana Sustainable Tourism Initiative (GSTI). We've printed some of their thoughts after completing a trip through Guyana. . . more>>
Guyana Tourism Awards
In November 2008, Guyana's Ministry of Tourism and Commerce and the Guyana Tourism Authority hosted Guyana's first tourism awards that honored 12 contributors to the growing sector. . . more>>
Pick of the Flock
For this issue's Pick of the Flock, we're recommending a new DVD of Guyana. . . more>>
BIRDING SITES
Home to roughly 300 Makushi Amerindians, Surama is a serene village set amongst five square miles of the Rupununi Savanna that is surrounded by the jungle-covered Pakaraima Mountains. This idyllic setting complete with the meandering Burro Burro River and a dense collection of flora and fauna has proved an ideal location for community-based ecotourism in Guyana. Surama has done so well developing their tourism products village tours, birdwatching trips, mountain treks, jungle walks, dugout canoe trips, wildlife spotting that the village has become the role model for community tourism in Guyana. And with the Educational Travel Community recently naming Surama Eco-Lodge as their 2009 Responsible Tourism Showcase Honoree, Surama will also be used as a role model for responsible tourism projects around the world. . . more >>
FEATURE BIRD
Typical Antbirds and Ground Antbirds of Guyana
Found only in the Neotropics, the entire Antbird family contains almost 300 species. Amongst the more challenging families in South America, serious birders love to find Antbirds, but they can be tough to see well, as some spend their entire lives in the forest canopy while others spend their time creeping around on the forest floor. Identifying them by voice is often key, but with 59 different species of Antbird, Antwren, Antpitta, Antthrush, and Antshrike, Guyana is a great place to actually see the difficult-to-find birds. . . more >>
BIRDING PEOPLE
Asaph Wilson
Birding guide, Asaph Wilson is a Wapishana Amerindian from the southern Rupununi Savannas. One of Guyana's top birding guides, he recently joined a Guyana Sustainable Tourism Initiative product familiarization trip for international tour operators and media as the lead local guide. On this trip, sometime in between spotting the Guianan Cock-of-the-Rock and the Harpy Eagle, Asaph took some time to speak with us about conservation, his favorite birds, and how to catch an anaconda. . . more >>
