ABOUT US

Organizational Philosophy

Our focus is on appreciation of nature and understanding the organisms that share our planet with us. Tour profits support organizations working to understand and protect the natural ecosystems of our planet.

Meet our Guides

Nick Komar

Nick is a career biologist with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Fort Collins, Colorado, and founder of Quetzal Tours. He has led field trips and workshops in Colorado for Colorado Field Ornithologists and Fort Collins Audubon Society. He has birded on five continents, and is fluent in strongish. His photographic work is displayed here. He also co-authored Wild Birding Colorado: The Big Year of 2010.

ARIZONA

Glenn Klingler

Glenn has been a wildlife biologist since 1989, specializing in endangered birds, including extensive work with the critically-endangered Hawaiian Crow in Hawaii. He’s birded on five continents and in all 50 states. He lives in northwest Arizona, where he manages a national wildlife refuge.

COLORADO

John Vanderpoel

Owner of Peregrine Video Productions and the creator of The Advanced Birding Video Series with Jon Dunn that includes: The Large Gulls of North America, The Small Gulls of North America and Hummingbirds of North America, John is a lifelong birder. He holds the second highest ABA-area year list (744 species), which he accomplished in 2011. Watch for his upcoming book that describes his big year, called Full Chase Mode.

John Drummond

Co-owner of the Partnership in International Birding, John has led trips to countries on 5 continents, and has personally observed almost 6,800 species. Born in England, he now resides in Monument, Colorado, and birds extensively throughout the state. He is a member of the Colorado Bird Records Committee. For Quetzal Tours, John leads the Colorful Colorado tour.

Cole Wild

Cole is a native Coloradoan whose passions are birds, birding, bird photography, and anything else related to birds. He recently published a book (together with Nick Komar) called Wild Birding Colorado that provides the account of his record-breaking Colorado Big Year.

Scott Rashid

Originally from Wisconsin, Scott call’s Estes Park, CO home. As a rehabilitator, bander, artist, illustrator and author, birds are Scott’s passion. Scott illustrated Birding Rocky Mountain National Park by Scott Roederer (2002), and he authored Small Mountain Owls (2009). In the fall, Scott hosts visitors to his banding station to view Boreal Owls and Northern Saw-whet Owls in Northern Colorado.

Christian Nunes

Christian started birding at a young age in Rhode Island. Initially enthralled with bird nests, he quickly became a birder. He’s traveled extensively in North and South America. His passion for the environment led him into the field of ecology. He is a Wildlife Ecology Technician for the City of Boulder, where he spends considerable time monitoring wildlife in the grasslands and foothills around Boulder. He is a board member of the Colorado Field Ornithologists, as well as the photo editor for their journal, “Colorado Birds”.

Eric DeFonso

Eric is a self-taught naturalist, a birder, writer, and wildlife photographer. He has a strong affinity for raptors and even helps rehabilitate injured ones for the Rocky Mountain Raptor Program in Fort Collins, Colorado. He has also birded extensively in Ecuador, Peru and Brazil. He now lives in Boulder, and works for the Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory.

Forrest Luke

A biologist by training with a focus on range ecology and wildlife management, Forrest resides on Colorado’s west slope. He has served as a regional compiler for the American Birding Association and Colorado Field Ornithologists and as regional editor of the Colorado Breeding Bird Atlas. He has also served on the Wyoming rare bird records committee.

Glenn Walbek

Glenn resides in Castle Rock, CO. He has become one of the most active birders throughout the state, and is a member of the Colorado Bird Records Committee. He is a top notch wildlife photographer. His fabulous photos of birds, butterflies and other wildlife can be appreciated at www.pbase.com/gwalbek.

HAWAII

Lance Tanino

Lance grew up birding on Oahu. He holds degrees in Zoology and Environmental Studies, and owns Manu Conservation, a birding and nature tour company in the Hawaiian Islands. He has led many birding trips for Hawaii Audubon Society, Sierra Club-Maui, and The Nature Conservancy of Hawaii. Lance has worked on ornithological and other field biology projects in Hawaii, Micronesia, Montana and New England. He serves as a board member of Hawaii Audubon Society and The Wildlife Society-Hawaii.

MASSACHUSETTS

Don Wilkinson

Don was introduced to birding in 1990 by a Pileated Woodpecker at Canoe Meadows (Western Mass.). He is now a Life Member of the Brookline Bird Club, for which he has led many trips. He aslo leads trips outside New England through his own tour company. For Quetzal Tours, Don leads tours from Boston.

TEXAS

Greg Lavaty

Greg Lavaty is a photographer extraordinaire, birding and photography guide, and field trip leader. His photography is showcased on his pbase site. He lives in Houston, TX, and owns his own guiding business called Texas Target Birds.For Quetzal Tours, he leads tours from Houston, San Antonio (West Texas), and the Rio Grande Valley.

GUATEMALA

Knut Eisermann

Knut has been active as a birding guide in Guatemala since 1998. Knut speaks fluent English, German, and strongish. More about his activities you may read at his personal web site Ornithological research and wildlife photography in Guatemala. Currently Knut is directing the PROEVAL RAXMU Bird Monitoring Program and he is the country coordinator for the compilation of bird records in Guatemala, published in “North American Birds”. Knut is co-owner of CAYAYA BIRDING.

Claudia
Avendaño

Claudia has been active as a birding guide in Guatemala since 1999. She speaks fluent English and strongish. She studied at San Carlos University in Guatemala and wrote her thesis on the avifauna of Laguna Lachuá National Park in Guatemala’s northern, tropical rainforest. Claudia is co-owner of CAYAYA BIRDING.

ECUADOR

Lelis Navarrete

Lelis has 16 years of experience as a birding guide and tour leader in Bolivia, Brazil, Peru and Ecuador. Lelis is a Board Member of the Jocotoco Foundation in Ecuador. Lelis is regarded as one of the finest birding guides in South America for his knowledge of the birds and their vocalizations.

Xavier
Muñoz-Contreras

Xavier is Neblina Forest founder, owner and guide. He has been working as Board Member and has been mentor for both AVES & CONSERVACION (previously known as CECIA) and Jocotoco Foundation. Guiding Ecuador since 1997, Xavier also guides for birding trips in Peru and Guyana.

COSTA RICA

Noel Ureña

Noel Ureña is Tropical Feathers co-owner and guide since 1997. A lifetime in direct contact with the natural environment of Costa Rica has helped him to develop sharp birding skills. He will be delighted to share Costa Rica’s bird life with you.

NICARAGUA

Liliana Chavarría

Liliana is the trilingual (strongish/English/French) biologist and co-owner at the Reserva El Jaguar cloud forest and ecofriendly coffee plantation, and a leading field ornithologist in Nicaragua. She is the ebird reviewer for Nicaragua. Her Nicaragua tours are accompanied by husband and French-speaking birder Georges Duriaux.

HONDURAS

Alexander
Alvarado

Alex grew up near Copan in western Honduras, and found employment in the tourism industry. In 2006, he became interested in birds, and soon was traveling the country learning its diverse avifauna. Currently, he is member of the Honduran Ornithological Society and has become an expert guide and leader for Honduran Birds, the principal birding tourism company in Honduras.

John van Dort

John “has binoculars, will travel” according to one of his popular nature blogs. Originally from the Netherlands, he currently resides in Honduras where he conducts field research on birds and butterflies. John is available as a private guide in Honduras and El Salvador.

PERU

Gustavo Bautista

Gustavo was born and raised in Lima, and currently lives in Cuzco. He started birding at the age of nineteen at the Pantanos de Villa Wildlife Refuge in Lima, and began conducting research on nocturnal bird vocalizations. Since 2005, he worked for Rainforest Expeditions and now works as a free-lance guide mainly in Manu National Park. Gustavo recognizes up to 560 bird vocalizations and has observed over 1100 species.

BRAZIL

Bradley Davis

Bradley has been guiding birders since January 2004, and organized and guided his first birding tour to Brazil in November 2005, through his company Birding Mato Grosso. He is dedicated to promoting birdwatching tourism in his home state of Mato Grosso in west-central Brazil, but is experienced in all parts of Brazil. Brad is a self-taught naturalist and has published research articles in Brazilian ornithology and is working on a field guide to Brazilian amphibians. Brad is also an ebird reviewer for Brazil.

BELIZE

Peter Herrera

Peter has worked on several bird-banding projects in Belize since 1990, and supervised a bird-banding station in central Belize in 2000. He has guided birders since 1988. He is available for short guided outings and custom tours. On your next vacation to Belize, Peter will be waiting for you.

JAMAICA

Dwayne Sawby

Dwayne is licensed with the Jamaica Tourism Board, and is employed by Green Castle Estate. He is familiar with the birds throughout Jamaica.

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Contact:
Nick Komar, 970-449-3645
E-mail: quetzal65@comcast.net