Birding tourism has brought Guyana to the forefront as a destination for tour operator Natu-ralist Journeys, biologist Narca Moore-Craig said following a visit here in March.
According to a press release from the USAID/Guyana Trade and Investment Support (GTIS) project, Moore-Craig was one of four biologists who visited Guyana from March 2-17 in an effort to experience Guyana’s tourism offerings.
The aim of the visit was to expand the biologists’ knowledge of Guyana’s habitats and birds, and to learn about additional excursions that might be worked into the trips Naturalist Journeys plans to organize to Guyana beginning by April of next year.
The biologists were able to participate in bird and butterfly watching, wildlife spotting and community tourism while on their visit. Among the birds spotted were the Crimson Fruitcrow and Pompadour Cotinga; the group were able to see the Helicopis genus, an “exquisitely beautiful” butterly, at the Georgetown Botanical Gardens and the Iwokrama Field Station.
The release said Moore-Craig also recommended that Guyana “focus on the larger natural history market as well”. She noted that preserving the integrity of the forest was essential to maintaining ecotourism. “Guyana seems to be headed in a good direction on that score, better than many countries,” she added.
Moore-Craig first visited Guyana last year as part of a Guyana Tourism Authority/ USAID/GTIS birding tourism familiarization tour. The release said the GTIS has since renamed the birding tourism programme the Guyana Sustainable Tourism Initiative.
