as in FONT  E-NEWS  BULLETINS
(relating to upcoming & completed tours)

COLORFUL BIRDS AT A FEEDER IN SOUTHEAST BRAZIL.
Green-headed Tanagers & Blue-naped Chlorophonias.
Both species have green heads. 
The tanager has blue on the shoulders.
The chlorophonia has blue on its neck.
(Photo by Dan Coleman, 
during the August 2007 FONT tour in Brazil,
and these colorful birds were again seen,
as were others, during our Southeast Brazil tour in August 2009.)

    

NEWS: 

A NEW BIRD SPECIES (possibly) during a recent FONT tour, in Chile
(see link below)

A NEW BIRD BOOK:  "A Field Guide to the Birds of Brazil", by Ber van Perlo, Oxford University Press. FONT now has a supply, available at a reduced price, for those going on our Brazil tours, and otherwise.   

During our March 2010 Costa Rica Tour, we visited where ALEXANDER SKUTCH lived.
Click here for: 
a FEATURE about him, his writing, & a gallery of NEOTROPICAL BIRDS 

Information about upcoming FONT birding & nature tours can be found throughout this web-site.
Some, still now (as of September 2010), with availability include:

JAPAN, our Winter Tour for cranes, eagles, & more,  January 10-22, 2011
(to be our 36th tour in Japan)
COSTA RICA & adjacent PANAMA, January 30 - February 15, 2011
LESSER ANTILLES, in the CARIBBEAN, February 19-27, 2011 
BELIZE,  February 27 - March 7, 2011   

Link:

Chronological Listing of All Scheduled Upcoming FONT Tours

Links follow below to info in previous FONT E-mail bulletins relating to our recent tours in:

MEXICO  (November 2008) - with Jaguar & Jabiru, Orange-breasted Falcon, & many other birds

ICELAND  (September/October 2008)

ARIZONA & MEXICO  (August/September 2008) - with some hummingbirds & other birds either from Mexico, or in it (and a bird that was "first ever" for the US)

BRAZIL & adjacent ARGENTINA & PARAGUAY  (July/August 2008)

MEXICO (June 2008) - with specialty & endemic birds of the Yucatan Peninsula & Cozumel Island

FONT E-News, Volume 18, No. 11
November 14, 2008
from Focus On Nature Tours, Inc.


Mexico - November 2008

The FONT Birding & Nature Tour in Mexico in November 2008 was with two "J"s - and with both of them during the same day: a Jabiru & a Jaguar. 
That morning, we saw closely a single Jabiru  (It's a rare bird in Mexico). 
Later that day, at dusk, we saw a Jaguar. It too was close, during our 5 minutes of observing it ahead of us on the road in the forest, becoming even more so, as the big cat walked, with its steady pace, to be immediately in front of our vehicle. There it was seen at every angle as it turned to cross the road, and then walked away a short bit before disappearing into the trees. 
Another highlight of the tour was a beautiful Rufescent (or Thicket) Tinamou that walked, with its determined pace, right by us, as we were on the lower steps of a Mayan temple. 
And yet another highlight was by yet another remote Mayan temple in the forest - an Orange-breasted Falcon. 
At the opposite (or northern) end of the Yucatan Peninsula, during one day we saw thousands of birds. Over  20,000 of them were American Flamingos. Others, in the multitude that day included thousands more of other kinds, with the assortment consisting of waterbirds, shorebirds, and some landbirds too. Notable among the last of these groups was a single hummingbird, known as the Mexican Sheartail - a rare bird with a very restricted range that's actually only about a kilometer wide.
Among the waterbirds, there were hundreds of American White Pelicans, with many feeding in unison on the water of the bay. The number of shorebirds were more than imaginable. In swarms, all around us, most were Lesser Yellowlegs, Least Sandpipers, other peeps, and Sanderlings. But there were others too, including a variety of Plovers: Snowy, Piping, Wilson's, Semipalmated, and Black-bellied. 
In the central Yucatan, a fascinating experience for us was in the "other nature" category. Underground, in a pool of clear water in a cave, we saw, with our flashlights, some Yucatanean endemic creatures that could never see us. In that dark world, there were all-white: a fish, an eel, and a shrimp, that do not have eyes!     

Links:

List of Birds & Other Wildlife during our Mexico Tour - November 2008

List of Birds of the Yucatan Region of Mexico  (with photos) 

Upcoming FONT Birding & Nature Tours in Mexico & Central America

American Flamingo
During our November 2008 Mexico Tour in the Yucatan,
we saw thousands of these beautiful creatures. 
 

A fine scene along the northern coast of the Yucatan Peninsula.
But the odd thing is that when we were there 
we were seeing birds all the time,
and in this photo somehow there are none!  
(Photo by Peter Mooney during our Nov 2008 Yucatan, Mexico tour)  

A Blue-crowned Motmot,
as seen by Mayan ruins during our November '08 Mexico Tour. 

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FONT E-News, Volume 18, No. 10
October 15, 2008
from Focus On Nature Tours, Inc.

During our week in Iceland, Sep 28 - Oct 6, 2008, there was so much diversity in the nature that was around us. 
Part of the country was still green, with moss on volcanic rocks. There were rainbows and waterfalls. And geysers and glaciers. 
In the north, there was an early snowfall. Above snow on the slopes of the hills, after dark, there were beautiful displays in the sky of Aurora Borealis, or the Northern Lights. 
As white as the snow, was an Arctic Fox, close to us. Its nose and the tips of its ears were black. 
We saw at least 3 adult Gyrfalcons. One flew completely around us as we were in our vehicle. A couple minutes later, it was chasing another Gyrfalcon. 
The Ptarmigans that we saw were turning white. 
Among other birds that were highlights were flocks of Barnacle Geese, Harlequin Ducks, and Barrow's Goldeneyes. 
This birding & nature tour was the 15th for FONT in Iceland. 
During it, 5 new species of birds were added our cumulative list during tours in that country (bringing it up to 101 species): 
Buff-bellied (or American) Pipit (an Icelandic rarity), American Black Duck, American Wigeon, Common Blackbird (not at all common in Iceland), and Red Crossbill. 
One morning, we had an enjoyable time watching about 20 of the last of these, the crossbills, along with about a dozen Eurasian Siskins, and many Redpolls. 
There was a good crop of cones in the spruce trees. And, now, with more such trees in Iceland, there are more birds there such as the crossbills and siskins. 
Continue reading, if you would, about more of what we saw and experienced in Iceland during our 2008 fall tour in that wonderful country for nature. 

The waterfall known as "Godafoss", one of a number that we saw in Iceland
during our Sep/Oct 2008 tour. 

Links:

More about the FONT Iceland Tour in Sep/Oct 2008

Birds during previous FONT Iceland Tours (with photos)

Complete Iceland Bird-List
(over 350 species, including vagrants from mainland Europe, Asia, & North America)

Birds during previous FONT tours in Europe (with photos)

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FONT E-News, Volume 18, No. 9
September 6, 2008
from Focus On Nature Tours, Inc.

Southern Arizona & northern Mexico - August/September 2008

During the first part of our late-August 2008 tour, in ARIZONA, a bird, normally of Mexico, was both seen and heard. That bird, a FIRST for the United States, was the Sinola Wren (formerly known as the Bar-vented Wren). Its new name is that of the Mexican state that's located south of the more-northerly Mexican state of Sonora, which borders on Arizona.
During the second part of this tour, during 3 days, we were in SONORA, MEXICO, where, at a remote ranch, we birded and explored in some of the most pristine countryside imaginable. Among our "Mexican" bird species there, in addition to another Sinola Wren, there was, in the riparian plants at the base of a magnificent canyon, the Rufous-capped Warbler. 
During the ARIZONA portion of the tour, as usual as during our previous tours, we enjoyed a wonderful assortment of Hummingbirds, including a couple species that are more common in Mexico, the White-eared, the Violet-crowned, and the Lucifer.
In addition to birds, during this tour, there was a fine assortment of butterflies, mammals, and reptiles.        

White-eared Hummingbird

Links:

More about the FONT Southern Arizona & Northern Mexico Tour in Aug/Sep 2008

Birds & Other Wildlife during our southern Arizona & northern Mexico Tour in Aug/Sep 2008

Cumulative List of Birds during FONT Arizona Tours (with photos)

Cumulative List of Birds during FONT Mexico Tours (part 1: Tinamous to Woodpeckers) (with photos)

Cumulative List of Birds during FONT Mexico Tours (part 2: Manakins to Buntings) (with photos)

Mammals during FONT Arizona Tours (with photos) 

Mammals during FONT Mexico Tours  (with photos)

Arizona Amphibians & Reptiles  (with photos)

Mexico Amphibians & Reptiles  (with photos)

Arizona Butterflies and Dragonflies & Damselflies  (with photos)

Upcoming FONT Birding & Nature Tours in Arizona

Upcoming FONT Birding & Nature Tours in Mexico

It was in the building on the hill with the red roof
where we stayed during our days & nights 
in remote eastern Sonora in northern Mexico
during our tour in September 2008.
Birds in the area included: Montezuma and Elegant Quails, 
Zone-tailed Hawk, Rose-throated Becard, 
Sinaloa Wren, Rufous-capped Warbler, 
Mexican Yellow Grosbeak, Five-striped Sparrow, 
and both Rufous-winged & Rufous-crowned Sparrows.
Pumas are said to be common in the area as are
White-nosed Coatis & Collared Peccaries.
We saw a number of Coue's White-tailed Deer,
Antelope Jackrabbits, and various bats.
Early in the mornings, Coyotes howled close to where we stayed,
actually just outside our windows.
At dusk, Common Poorwills called, even though it was early September. 
After dark, in the completely-clear sky, there was a superb show 
of stars & planets, with a brilliant Milky Way 
that stretched from nearly horizon to horizon.
A couple very bright "falling stars" were also in the cast of celestial characters.
This was as some Elf Owls called, even though, again,
it was September.

Below is another view from elsewhere on the property
where we stayed in Sonora, Mexico in September '08. 

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Brazil (Southeast & Mato Grosso do Sul)  
& adjacent Argentina & Paraguay - July/August 2008

Again, during this FONT tour in Brazil, our 43rd, a nice assortment of birds & animals were seen. Also, particularly in the area of Iguazu Falls, there was a tremendous variety of butterflies.
Among the mammals during the tour, highlights included: a wonderful look at a Brazilian Tapir, as many as 7 Giant Anteaters in one day (including a mother with a young animal on its back), a fine look at an Ocelot, and two Giant Otters seen very well.
Nearly 300 species of birds were found. 
Among the last of them, on August 18th, on the grass at the airport in Campo Grande, there was, in addition to Red-winged Tinamous, an Upland Sandpiper, having just flown in from North America. 
On a nearby wire, that day, there were 3 Purple Martins, also having just come from North America. 

Iguacu Falls
(photo by Trevor Sims,
 during the FONT Tour in Brazil in August 2008)

Links:

List of Birds & Other Wildlife during our Brazil Tour - July/August '08

Cumulative List of Birds during FONT Brazil Tours:
Part 1: Tinamous to Flycatchers
Part 2: Antshrikes to Grosbeaks

Birds in Mato Grosso do Sul (with photos)

Birds in Southeast Brazil (with photos) 

Rare Birds during FONT Tours in Brazil (with photos)

Mammals & Other Wildlife during FONT Brazil Tours (with photos) 

Butterflies of Brazil & Argentina, including those at Iguazu Falls (with photos)

Upcoming FONT Birding & Nature Tours in Brazil

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FONT E-News, Volume 18, No. 7
July 7, 2008
from Focus On Nature Tours, Inc.


Mexico (mostly the Yucatan; also Cozumel Island) - June 2008

This tour, as noted, was mostly on the Yucatan Peninsula, and also on Cozumel Island, 12 miles offshore. We say "mostly on the Yucatan Peninsula" as we also went further south, into remote areas, quite wild, close to the Mexican borders with Guatemala and Belize. Most notable of those areas was Calakmul. Not only a remote, not often visited, site of Mayan ruins, comparable to Tikal in Guatemala, Calakmul is vast reserve known as a biosphere. Standing atop the highest temple there one sees as far as the horizon in all directions only a sea of green foliage of forest. Calakmul was one of 4 biospheres that we visited during our tour, during which we found over 200 species of birds.
And there could have been more as the Yucatan is a bird-rich area. Not only is it with many different birds (about 540 species cumulatively recorded in 75 families - that's about half of the 100 or species that occur in Mexico), but the Yucatan has a number of interesting species and subspecies as the isolated region has evolved, due to a number of factors, to have its own distinctive flora and fauna. Thus, it has 14 endemic species of birds, and almost 100 endemic subspecies.
And the bird-life on Cozumel Island is interesting too, as it has 3 endemic species and about 15 endemic subspecies.
To read about these interesting birds of the Yucatan and Cozumel, click the link above.
Among our favorite birds of this tour were the endemic Yucatan Wren (the last of the Yucatan species to be described, in 1934), and the nearly-endemic Mexican Sheartail. That hummingbird has a very interesting range. Like the Yucatan, or Black-throated, Bobwhite, it is restricted to the Yucatan all but for a small isolated population elsewhere. But on the Yucatan, it only occurs in the north, near the coast, where its range has only the width of just over a kilometer!  
All of the endemics & those nearly-endemics notwithstanding, the bird that we liked the most during our tour was one with an extensive range in Central & South America. But we saw it so well! And it stayed - just a few feet from us. It was the little and brightly-colored American Pygmy Kingfisher, by a small marsh in the forest in that wild area of Calakmul.                        

The Mayans called it "TOH".
We know it as the 
TURQUOISE-BROWED MOTMOT.
We saw many during our June '08 Mexico Tour.  

Links:

More about the FONT Mexico Tour in June 2008

List of Birds & Other Wildlife during our Mexico Tour - June 2008

List of Birds of the Yucatan Region of Mexico  (with some photos) 

Upcoming FONT Birding & Nature Tours in Mexico & Central America

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