FAUNA PARAGUAY BIRDWATCHING WILDLIFE AND ECO-TOURS

·Paul Smith - Co-author of the Field Guide to the Birds of Paraguay, the mini field-guide series and founder of FAUNA Paraguay, Paul has lived in Paraguay since 2003. A qualified zoologist he has extensive field experience in Paraguay, but is still amazed on a daily basis by the beauty of the country´s “naturaleza”. Though birds are his specialist subject he has a keen interest in mammals, amphibians and insects, especially Lepidoptera. He also works as a South American correspondent author for several major travel book companies giving him an excuse to travel and get intimate with the continent´s animals. Paul is the Paraguayan representative of the Neotropical Bird Club. He is currently involved in extensive inventory work of all Paraguayan fauna. Paul leads a variety of cultural, birding and general interest tours out of Encarnación. He speaks English and Spanish.
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·Hugo del Castillo - Co-author of the Checklist of the Birds of Paraguay, the Atlas of the Birds of Paraguay and the mini field-guide series. Hugo is a Paraguayan ornithologist with a life-time of field experience. He works for Guyra Paraguay charged with the maintenance of the Biodiversity Database which gives him an unrivalled knowledge of animal distribution in Paraguay. Having travelled the length and breadth of the country in search of animals in the past 15 years, Hugo is the man to turn to when it comes to finding the most sought after species. Hugo leads a variety of birding and general interest tours out of Asunción, especially when the destinations are remote. He speaks English, Spanish and Portuguese.
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·Dr Robert Clay - Author/co-author of over 50 publications about birds in Paraguay , including the first Spanish language field guide, the Checklist of the Birds of Paraguay, the Atlas of the Birds of Paraguay and the Field Guide to the Birds of Paraguay. Rob’s interest in Neotropical birds began during an undergraduate expedition to Paraguay in 1992 and led to Ph.D. studies of manakins in Costa Rica and Panama . He has called Paraguay home since 1997 (apart from a two year break in Ecuador ). Rob is currently the Senior Conservation Manager for BirdLife International in the Americas , and prior to that worked for Guyra Paraguay (the BirdLife Partner in Paraguay ). At least until Hugo or Paul catch him up, Rob is the top “lister” in Paraguay , having seen 637 of the 710 species recorded in the country. Rob leads birding tours out of Asunción, including day trips to his "local patches" Bahía de Asunción and Jardín Botánico.He speaks English and Spanish.
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·Dr Robert Owen - Adjunct Professor of Biology at Texas Tech University (USA), he works and lives in Asunción, Paraguay. His primary interests are in the ecology and natural history of Neotropical small mammals (bats, marsupials, and rodents), and his research over the past 35 years has included field work in the United States, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, Cuba, Dominica, Mexico, and Paraguay. He is currently involved in research on the ecology of Paraguayan bats and rodents, and the diseases which they carry and may transmit to humans, particularly as a result of habitat degradation. Robert leads the Just Mammals tours out of Asunción. He speaks English and Spanish.
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·Arne Lesterhuis - Dutch by birth, Arne has been working and traveling in Paraguay ever since 2000 and a fanatical birder ever since he could walk. A qualified wildlife manager, working for Birdlife International, he has also worked for Guyra Paraguay on field projects in all corners of the country. Arne is fascinated by migration patterns, especially those of the dull-coloured migratory shorebirds like plovers and sandpipers, a slightly odd interest for somebody living in an landlocked country… Arne leads cultural tours, Short Breaks and Day trips out of Asunción. He speaks English, German, Dutch and Spanish.
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