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Catch up on the latest news from Victor Emanuel Nature Tours by reading the latest VENTflash.
Delaware Bay Shorebirds: An Introductory Birding Tour
Michael O'Brien: June 07, 2013
This brief exploration of the Delaware Bayshore region was timed to coincide with peak concentrations of migrating shorebirds. Our small group was treated to some impressive shorebird flocks, and also had fun watching spawning Horseshoe Crabs and seeking out secretive marsh birds. We discussed shorebird migration, and how several shorebird species depend on Horseshoe Crab eggs to fuel their travel to the Arctic. We worked on the often tricky shorebird identification, and had some fun coming u...
Spring in Cape May: A Relaxed and Easy Tour
Louise Zemaitis: June 06, 2013
When birding Cape May in springtime, there is always an element of excitement. Choices are made based on weather and tides, determining when and where to go. During our 2013 Spring in Cape May Relaxed and Easy tour, those decisions led to great birding and some wonderful surprises. On our first day in the field, an unseasonably strong cold front beckoned us to get to the southern tip of New Jersey. After a morning stop at Heislerville Wildlife Management Area, with its close views of shorebir...
Spring Grand Arizona
Barry Zimmer: June 03, 2013
As we gazed up into the oaks, we suddenly saw the active little warbler creeping about near the trunks with its tail fanned. The rich salmon-red breast shone brightly in the afternoon sun and was a perfect complement to the slaty-black body. The bird kept coming closer until it was practically right overhead, giving everyone in the group superb views. An accidental visitor from Mexico, this Slate-throated Redstart in the Chiricahua Mountains of Arizona was an ABA lifer for everyone, including...
Dry Tortugas
Brennan Mulrooney: June 01, 2013
This Dry Tortugas tour was blessed with bad weather. Now this may sound odd at first, but when you're birding on a remote island, in the heat of migration, bad weather is exactly what you want, if you want to see birds. We arrived at Dry Tortugas National Park just as a serious thunderstorm was sweeping across the islands. The rain was falling so hard that it totally obscured our view of Fort Jefferson, which was only a few hundred yards away. It was all our captain could do to simply hold us...
Rivers and Mountains of Oregon and Washington
Bob Sundstrom: May 31, 2013
The Rivers and Mountains of Oregon and Washington tour begins (and ends) in Portland, Oregon, and then works east along the Columbia River Gorge, whose towering basalt cliffs and green-clad lower reaches place it among the most scenic places in the United States. By the first afternoon, we turn north from the river toward towering Mt. Adams in the South Cascades, where we will spend two nights at Mt. Adams Lodge. The comfortable lodge sits at the foot of 12,281 ft. Mt. Adams on many acres of ...
South Florida & The Keys
Michael O'Brien: May 29, 2013
This short South Florida & the Keys trip was designed as a quick sampling of South Florida specialties, as well as an opportunity to encounter migrants at various points along the way. Beginning and ending in Key West, we ventured north through the Keys to Florida City, from which we explored the Everglades and suburban Miami. On our first day we headed to Summerland and Saddlebunch keys, where numerous White-crowned Pigeons put on a great show. We also had good studies of our first Black...
Spring Birding in Spain
Brian Gibbons: May 29, 2013
From the sandy streets of El Rocío to the snowbank blocking our progress in the Picos de Europa, our 2013 Spring Birding in Spain tour presented an enormous variety of habitats and the birds they support. The mudflats and marshes near Huelva teemed with migrant shorebirds, and waterbirds were numerous around Doñana. The Caceres Plains hosted some chilled grassland birds like bustards and sandgrouse, and the melting snow revealed the Roman road we traversed to get the Bluethroat ...
Dry Tortugas
Michael O'Brien: May 28, 2013
The Dry Tortugas is always an exciting place to bird because you never know what surprises will greet you. These remote islands in the Gulf of Mexico serve as a magnet for migratory birds passing from Cuba and the Yucatan Peninsula to points north. Our late April visit was as interesting as always, and was made particularly enjoyable due to the friendly and accommodating crew of the Playmate. Sooty Tern— Photo: Michael O'Brien Sailing from Key West, we passed the edge of th...
California Specialties
Jeri Langham: May 22, 2013
When I retired from California State University in May 2008, I was ready to do whatever I desired on my first free spring since starting kindergarten. Then I received a phone call from Victor Emanuel. Would I like to take over the late April California Specialties tour? Before I began leading tours for VENT 27 years ago, I chased vagrant birds to all corners of California. However, once I became a part-time VENT leader on top of full-time university teaching, there was no extra time. In the l...
Myanmar
Dion Hobcroft: May 21, 2013
The reclusive Southeast Asian nation of Myanmar is emerging from decades of military government and international sanctions to open its doors to the west. This was my first trip to Myanmar, VENT's fourth tour here, and I can only hope to return for more visits. It is a fascinating country. We arrived in Yangon and settled into our very posh hotel, first taking a walk around a nearby lake and introducing ourselves to our first birds including a Bronze-winged Jacana, the colorful Coppersmith Ba...
Missouri and Arkansas
Steve Hilty: May 20, 2013
This trip is a complete immersion into the Ozarks and adjacent tallgrass prairie regions, including natural history, geology, hydrology, and human history. I think that it is not possible to fully understand this region without understanding something about its geologic history and hydrology as well. This trip is much about birds in the early mornings, but there is plenty of botanizing and time devoted to other natural history aspects as well. Visits to two tallgrass prairie sites, a spectacu...
Thailand Highlights
Dion Hobcroft: May 17, 2013
Our 2013 Thailand Highlights tour was yet another absolutely fabulous tour to this wonderful country. We recorded 414 species of birds including 12 heard only. Some of the more elusive species we observed so well included Bar-backed and Scaly-breasted partridges, Silver and Hume's pheasants, Green Peafowl, Painted Stork, Spot-billed Pelican, Black-headed Ibis, Collared Falconet, Black-tailed Crake, Asian Dowitcher, Spoon-billed Sandpiper, Eurasian Woodcock, Yellow-vented Pigeon, Blossom...
High Island Migration
Bob Sundstrom: May 17, 2013
The Upper Gulf Coast of Texas in late April ranks as perhaps the best birding locale in the country at that point in the spring. The relatively small area covered during our High Island Migration tour offers more amazing birding variety than just about any week of birding in North America. The High Island wooded sanctuaries are the best known feature of the area, as hot spots of prime coastal migrant habitat now preserved aside from development. But the High Island tour is not just about the ...
High Island, Texas: An Introductory Birding Tour
Bob Sundstrom: May 17, 2013
The High Island Introductory tour offers more astounding variety in a few days of birding than probably any other short tour in North America. The High Island sanctuaries, which are areas of prime coastal migrant habitat preserved from development, are certainly the best known feature of this very bird-rich region. But several other nearby natural elements rival the sanctuary woods as phenomenal birding sites. These include Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge, which includes a vast, fresh water ...
Big Bend National Park and the Texas Hill Country
Barry Zimmer: May 16, 2013
Is it cooler to see a Golden-cheeked Warbler from fifteen feet away, or a Colima Warbler? Which of the regularly occurring U.S. buntings is the prettiest? Does a Black-capped Vireo ever sing from a lone bush in an otherwise open grassy field? What is it like to see ten million vertebrates in 45 minutes? These questions and more were answered on our recent Big Bend National Park and the Texas Hill Country tour. Colima Warbler, Boot Springs, April 2013 — Photo: Ba...
Best of Costa Rica
David Wolf: May 16, 2013
Small in size, but huge in possibilities, Costa Rica is simply amazing! There are few other places in the world where such a great diversity of birds and other wildlife can be seen so readily and in such a small area, and our 2013 Best of Costa Rica tour took full advantage of this wealth as we roamed from one side of the country to the other. Costa Rica has done much to promote conservation and this really paid off for us, with an astounding number of birds seen on the trip. More important, ...
Amazon River Cruise
Barry Lyon: May 16, 2013
Even more than the mighty Andes, the Amazon River is the singular landmark that more people are likely to identify with South America than any other. At almost 4,000 miles in length, the river passes through Brazil for most of its course; however, it originates in Peru, flowing for several hundred miles in a northeasterly direction before exiting the country. The Amazon is many things: a river of legend, a river of history, and a life-sustaining conduit for people and commerce. The region dra...
Machu Picchu Pre-trip to Amazon River Cruise
Barry Lyon: May 16, 2013
On a remote Andean ridge between two cloud-misted mountains, Machu Picchu exists as one of the world's most instantly recognizable landmarks. The center of the Inca Empire for nearly 100 years, Machu Picchu is today one of the most familiar icons of South American tourism. For this Amazon River Cruise Pre-trip, a visit to the revered archaeological site was the obvious centerpiece of a tour that included a wealth of natural and cultural attractions. Traveling from Lima on the coast to the And...
Spring in South Texas: Hill Country Extension
Barry Zimmer: May 16, 2013
As midday approached, we had already had a very successful morning birding the Texas Hill Country. Eight brilliant Golden-cheeked Warblers, a species which breeds nowhere else in the world, had been tallied. A locally rare pair of Audubon's Orioles had been found on the private ranch we were birding. Other highlights of the morning included scope views of singing Yellow-throated Vireo, a displaying male Vermilion Flycatcher, an early singing male Blue Grosbeak, stunning Summer Tanagers,...
Spring in South Texas
Barry Zimmer: May 16, 2013
Our 2013 Spring in South Texas tour was arguably our best ever. From South Texas specialties to rarities to migrant land birds, this trip had it all. We began in Corpus Christi, a day after a cold front had passed through. Rather stout north winds the afternoon of our arrival seemed promising for bringing down migrants. We had an hour to bird before dinner that day and headed to nearby Tule Lake. A quick stop at a roadside pond en route yielded a locally rare Least Grebe (our first South Texa...
