Our Guides - Birding Tours Colombia

Daniel Uribe - Restrepo

Colombia

Daniel has been chasing birds since he was 9-years old, growing on a farm in the Central Andes of Colombia, with his bedroom walls covered with colorful prints of John James Audubon’s birds. Daniel graduated in Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science and has pursued bird and nature photography as his main passions in life. His images can be seen at https://www.flickr.com/photos/birdingtourscolombia/. He is co-founder of the Sociedad Caldense de Ornitología (SCO) based in Manizales. Dedicated mainly to conservation and sustainable development projects, Daniel has consulted for many of the most prominent environmental organizations in Colombia and currently assists private nature reserves in Colombia in the establishment of agritourism and ecotourism services.

Diana Balcázar - Niño

Colombia

Diana has loved birds even before she was born! Her enthusiasm and care for clients and friends, and her knowledge of the birds and places of her region, has made Diana an indispensable collaborator for our tours birding the Bogotá plateau and surroundings. Diana has been chasing birds in firm since 1998 and has become a full-time guide that combines birds, nature and culture. Trained formally as a Social Communicator, Diana is keenly interested in all aspects of culture. She is a prominent writer and environmental educator, having written four booklets on birds for kids. She is the author of a book entitled Birds of my city covering the birds of Bogotá. Diana lives in Bogotá, speaks English fluently and has guided birding tours throughout the country, mainly in the Eastern and Central Andes, Chocó and the Eastern plains (Orinoco region).

Waly Naranjo

Colombia

After hiking and climbing the tallest peaks of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta, Waly Naranjo safely settled down for the birds more than 15 years ago when he was managing recovery programs for wild fauna in the Caribbean coast. Trained as a Doctor in Veterinary Medicine, Waly combines bird guidance with his two other passions in life: computers and nature conservation. Waly designed and manages DATAves - the database for the Red Nacional de Observadores de Aves (RNOA) – Colombia's Birdwatching Network. He fathered the RNOA’s Discussion List, which has become the most active forum for birders in Colombia. Waly registered three new species for Colombia and documented the expansion in the distribution of many Caribbean species. As a recordist, Waly has gathered an extensive collection of bird songs and is a certified birding guide, much devoted in the training of Colombians in birdwatching, conservation and nature exploration. Very knowledgeable of the Guajira geography and Indian cultures, Waly is the best guide for running a tour in Northern Colombia.

Oswaldo Cortés

Colombia

Oswaldo Cortés is a biologist with wide experience in bird research and wildlife conservation. His career has centered in population analysis and preservation of focal (key) species. Since his graduation 6 years ago, Oswaldo has undertaken research projects with the most prominent ornithologists in Colombia. Some projects include understanding the voice variations of Mountain Grackle (an endemic & endangered species), natural history of the Chestnut-winged Chachalaca & Chestnut-bellied Hummingbird, evaluation of the conservation status of Black Inca, comprehensive evaluations of endangered species for the Red Data Book of Colombian birds and field analysis of hummingbird populations in the Eastern Andes. Oswaldo has studied bird communities in paramo & timberline ecosystems in the Eastern Andes, Eastern plains & Western Andes, Andean wetlands, La Guajira peninsula, Serranía de las Quinchas and many other birding sites in Colombia. For this reason, Oswaldo is an outstanding birding guide around Bogotá & Eastern Andes.

Fabio Arias

Colombia

Fabio has been birding since a friend handled to him the seminal book “Birds of Colombia” by Steven Hilty & William Brown. Trained initially in adventure tourism, Fabio quickly diverted into nature conservation, working for local and regional institutions in charge of watershed management, increasing environmental awareness in rural & urban communities. He began guiding at state and regional nature preserves, showing the diversity of plants & birds to visitors. More recently, Fabio has taken bird photography more seriously, and has published informative and nice field guides for local communities in the Central Andes of Colombia. Fabio has been guiding for birders from abroad since 2014 and has attended the British Bird Fair & South American Bird Fair more recently.

José Luna

Colombia

Jose was born and raised in a farm in the Western Andes of Colombia. He begun birding through a conservation project, when he was 17. Acting first as a local guide for Colombian birders, he soon switched towards guiding for international travelers, expanding his birding localities and knowledge of birds. Jose soon became one of the best birding guides for the Western & Central Andes of Colombia. As a freelance guide, he is often hired by operating companies from Colombia and abroad. Jose´s skills for finding birds by sight are amazing, and his capacity to recognize songs & vocalizations is equally astounding. When guiding, Jose will do his best to show the birds of his beloved Colombia. If not guiding, Jose will be with his parents, running the family farm in San Bernardo, a small village above Cali. Otherwise, he will be birdwatching for fun and recording songs & calls, reading Ornithological literature or listening to bird recordings.