Comments and Press

"Los Tarrales ... The guides there really know their stuff and the lodge has an engaging old-world charme."
Rough Guide to Guatemala, 4th edition (2009), p.159, by Iain Stewart.

Comments from some of our visitors	Press
Steve N. G. Howell, author of A Guide to the Birds of Mexico and Northern Central America Tarrales is great. In my relaxed morning simply birding on trails that led off from the cabins I found over 100 species of birds, including five species of parrots, three motmots, White-bellied Chachalaca, Highland Guan, Long-tailed Manakin, Rufous Sabrewing, and Prevost’s Ground-Sparrow. I can’t wait to get back and spend more time in such a birdy and hospitable setting. March 2008 Robert Mertz, MD, USA A wonderful spot for birding. We had a most enjoyable two days. The food was excellent as was the bird guiding. We hope to return some day to see the Horned Guan. December 2007 Fred Fiedler, USA We love the birds, friendly people, and great accommodations. Thank you for setting up this nature preserve. This is important work and will benefit all of us for years to come. December 2007 Berkley Darr, Richmond, VA, USA We appreciate the work you are doing and your passion for conservation. Tom Schall, Padre Island, TX, USA. A most wonderful visit. I enjoyed the lodging and the food and especially the ambience. This is truly a gem! Josué is a fabulous birding guide and I consider him my friend. He is very talented and an enjoyable companion. 27 October 2007 Anders Kling, Sweden. A lot of birds (140+ in just two days), very competent guides – Josué and Co., good food, and comfortable lodging. What else could you ask for! Muchas gracias! 22 October 2007 Frank Gallo, Connecticut, USA. Thank you for a wonderful stay. I will bring a group as soon as I am able and hope to visit myself—keep Josué going, he’s a good guy. Cheers, Frank. 2 October 2006 Dr. John B. Heppner, Florida State Collector of Arthropods, Gainesville, Florida. Vast fauna of Lepidoptera in the area of Champion’s collecting 100 years ago-excellent! 30 September 2006 Greg Johnson, USA. Great Trip. We saw the Horned Guan and Azure-rumped Tanager. Josué es a great guide. Thanks to Lalo for his assistance in finding the Horned Guan. 20 August 2006 Rick & Brad Brekelbaum, Arkansas, USA. We had a wonderful time enjoying the finca & birdwatching (got many lifers). The food and hospitality were great and Josué is a first class guide — we enjoyed so much being with him! We hope to return and bring more family. 27 July 2006 Maules & Bakemans, Poulsbo / Seattle Washington, USA. Well worth the stop – We only wish we had enough time to spend the night. 19 July 2006 Francine Wildenborg, Netherlands. This was a great experience. Beautiful reserve and great tour. Also the lunch was fabulous! Keep it like this and thank you very much! 1 May 2006 Timothy Barksdale, USA. Hugo and I arrived on the 11th of April, we began to film with Sony high definition Camera and Fuji 42X lens. 1st day was quiet. Next day, at dawn, Lalo found Horned Guan and later I was able to film two Horned Guans!!!! Azure-rumped Tanager, Long-tailed Manakin, Blue-crowned Motmot, Rufous Saberwing and more. I’ll be back in 2007 17 April 2006 Juliet Petrencs, USA; Sabine Werzinger and Annegret vom Stein, Germany. These buildings are great, lots of character, great books, decor. Cool bathrooms. Beautiful hikes, lots of birds. My favorite birding in Guatemala. Conchita's cooking muy rico! And finally some good coffee. We came with CAYAYA BIRDING and saw more than 100 birds in one day. Muy feliz! 11 December 2005 Kim Anderson and Alan van Norman, Bismarck, North Dakota. Thank you so much for your gracious hospitality. We had a wonderful time birding! This is truely a paradise! Good food, and very friendly people. We will never forget you. 9 November 2005 Andy Sninsky and Inge Holecek, Monteverde, Costa Rica. We had a terrific time birding on your finca. We will be writing it up in the paper as well as talking to our friends in Monteverde. Your food is tops and your birds are friendly. Keep in mind bird feeding boards and hummingbird feeders. We hope to see you in the future. 9 November 2005 Dr. and Mrs. Ingersoll III, Rhode Island, USA. Most friendly and gracious hosts. Fantastic nature observations serve to please all levels of study. Comfortable accommodations and deightful cuisine. We hope to return soon. Muchas gracias. 30 October 2005 Cynthia Ryan, USA. Had a wonderful stay - too short. Great birding - saw over 32 species in an afternoon and morning walk. Josué was a wonderful guide. Lots of fun to be with. Lovely service - peaceful place to be - thank you very much! 29 July 2005 Tom Jenner, England. I had a great morning birdwatching with Ismael. We saw 67 species in only a few hours. I look forward to comming back. Linda Vis, Netherlands. Para mi la reserva es un lugar inolvidable, el "lodge" es muy comodo, fresco, buenas camas, muy limpio=perfecto! Tengo muy buenos recuerdos y regresaré! Hasta la proxima! Linda Nicole Balloffet, Washington D.C., USA. Thanks so much for showing us your beautiful reserve!! This is a beautiful place! The conservation, food and lodging were wonderful. Saludos, Nicole ballofet Habacuc Ychante, Mexico Entre varias opciones seguí una corazonada la cual consistía en conocer "Los Tarrales", fue una atinada elección venir aqui y conocer este hermosisimo lugar donde la Biodiversidad se hace posible con sus especies y animales y vegetales. Los senderos son accesibles y se puede observar mariposas, aves, reptiles, y capricoos de la naturaleza! Buena Suerte Habacuc Daniela Diamente, Guatemala. Casi es mi segunda casa aqui, y sigo llegando por lo precioso que es y por la gente tan amable que vive en Los Tarrales, Gracias Barbara Chaves, USA. This experience was beyond our expectations. We loved the exposure to village life on the plantation and the lodge and meals were terrific. Claudia (from CAYAYA BIRDING) provided us with a birding tour that was rich in diversity and experience. We loved her warmth and sense of humor and wonderfully creative expression. We will highly recommend this to friends and other birding enthusiasts in the USA!	The Los Tarrales tourism program has been mentioned in several international and national publications: International media: Cocker, M. (2008) Guatemala: a land of temples and toucans. BBC Wildlife 26 (8): 90-93. Eisermann, K. (2007) Important Bird Areas in Guatemala. Winging It 19 (5): 11. Eisermann, K. (2007) Vogelreichtum in Guatemala: endemische Arten, IBAs und nachhaltige Bewirtschaftung. Falke 54: 385-391. Online at: www.falke-journal.de (in German) Bland, B. (2007) Guatemala: the new birding Mecca in Central America. Birding World 20 (5): 210-215. Clark, B. & B. Clark (2006) Guatemala's natural private reserves. Winging It 18 (6): 20. Mackenzie, C (2005) Low prices force guatemalan coffee farmers to seek alternative income. The Miami Herold, 4 July 2005: 8. Available online at: http://nl.newsbank.com Guatemalan media: Múnera, C. & R. Schiele (2008) Observación de aves en Guatemala. Instituto Guatemalteco de Turismo, Guatemala. Burgos, C., F. Guzmán, C. Dallies & C. Mendizabal (2008) Observación del quetzal en Guatemala. Instituto Guatemalteco de Turismo, Guatemala. Rigalt, C. (2007) Turismo de aves alza el vuelo. El Periodico, 31 Diciembre 2007: 2-3. Online at: www.elperiodico.com.gt Pérez, L. (2007) Ecoturismo, alternativa de desarrollo. Prensa Libre, 2 Septiembre 2007. Online at: www.prensalibre.com Beteta, L. (2005) Descubra una joya natural de la Costa Sur. Revista D (Prensa Libre, Guatemala) no. 30: 30-31. Online at: http://www.prensalibre.com González, P. (2004) El Inguat se convierte en "tour" operador. El Periodico, 3 Noviembre 2004. Online at: www.elperiodico.com.gt Los Tarrales has supported several scientific studies, resulting in the following publications: Ornithology Eisermann, K. & C. Avendaño (2007) Lista comentada de las aves de Guatemala - Annotated checklist of the birds of Guatemala. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona, Spain. Eisermann, K., A. Burge & G. López (2007) Nesting records of Horned Guan (Oreophasis derbianus) on Atitlán volcano, Guatemala. Bulletin of the IUCN / BIRDLIFE / WPA Cracid Specialist Group 23: 13-24. Rivas, J. A. & A. J. Cóbar (2007) Distribución y conservación del pavo de cacho (Oreophasis derbianus) en Guatemala. Pp. 10-14 In: J. Cornejo & E. Secaira (eds.) Memorias del III Simposium Internacional sobre Oreophasis derbianus. Comité Internacional para la Conservación de Oreophasis derbianus y su Hábitat. Veracruz, México. Girón Solórzano, E. R. & R. Cárdenas (2007) Avances en la conservaciónn del hábitat del pavo de cacho (Oreophasis derbianus) en la cadena volcánica de Atitlán. Pp. 54-64 In: In: J. Cornejo & E. Secaira (eds.) Memorias del III Simposium Internacional sobre Oreophasis derbianus. Comité Internacional para la Conservación de Oreophasis derbianus y su Hábitat. Veracruz, México. Eisermann, K. & D. M. Brooks (2006) Unusual and noteworthy nesting records for Guatemala. Cotinga 26: 48-51. Eisermann, K. & C. Avendaño (2006) Diversidad de aves en Guatemala, con una lista bibliográfica. Pp. 525-623 In: E. Cano (ed.) Biodiversidad de Guatemala, Vol. 1. Universidad del Valle de Guatemala, Guatemala. Eisermann, K., N. Herrera & O. Komar (2006) Highland Guan (Penelopina nigra). Pp. 85-90 In: D. M. Brooks (ed.) Conserving Cracids: the most threatened family of birds in the Americas. Miscellaneous Publications of the Houston Museum of Natural Science 6. Seceira, E. (2005) Avances en la conservación del hábitat del Pavo de Cacho en la cadena volcánica de Atitlán, Guatemala. Pp. 18-25 In: J. Rivas, E. Secaira & J. Cornejo (eds.) Memorias II Simposium Internacional Oreophasis derbianus, 7-9 Abril 2005, Reserva Los Tarrales, Patulul, Suchitepéquez, Guatemala. The Nature Conservancy, Guatemala. Sandoval, M. L. (2005) Experiencia en Educación Ambiental sobre el Pavo de Cacho y su Hábitat, Cadena Volcánica de Atitlán. Pp. 26-29 In: J. Rivas, E. Secaira & J. Cornejo (eds.) Memorias II Simposium Internacional Oreophasis derbianus, 7-9 Abril 2005, Reserva Los Tarrales, Patulul, Suchitepéquez, Guatemala. The Nature Conservancy, Guatemala. Herpetology Köhler, G. & M. Acevedo (2004) The anoles (genus Norops) of Guatemala. I. The species of the Pacific versant below 1500 m elevation. Salamandra 40 (2): 113-140. Entomology Wild, A. L. (2005) Taxonomic revision of the Pachycondyla apicalis species complex (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Zootaxa 834: 1-25.

Comments from some of our visitors

Press

Steve N. G. Howell, author of A Guide to the Birds of Mexico and Northern Central America
Tarrales is great. In my relaxed morning simply birding on trails that led off from the cabins I found over 100 species of birds, including five species of parrots, three motmots, White-bellied Chachalaca, Highland Guan, Long-tailed Manakin, Rufous Sabrewing, and Prevost’s Ground-Sparrow. I can’t wait to get back and spend more time in such a birdy and hospitable setting.
March 2008

Robert Mertz, MD, USA
A wonderful spot for birding. We had a most enjoyable two days. The food was excellent as was the bird guiding. We hope to return some day to see the Horned Guan.
December 2007

Fred Fiedler, USA
We love the birds, friendly people, and great accommodations. Thank you for setting up this nature preserve. This is important work and will benefit all of us for years to come.
December 2007

Berkley Darr, Richmond, VA, USA
We appreciate the work you are doing and your passion for conservation.

Tom Schall, Padre Island, TX, USA.
A most wonderful visit. I enjoyed the lodging and the food and especially the ambience. This is truly a gem! Josué is a fabulous birding guide and I consider him my friend. He is very talented and an enjoyable companion.
27 October 2007

Anders Kling, Sweden.
A lot of birds (140+ in just two days), very competent guides – Josué and Co., good food, and comfortable lodging. What else could you ask for! Muchas gracias!
22 October 2007

Frank Gallo, Connecticut, USA.
Thank you for a wonderful stay. I will bring a group as soon as I am able and hope to visit myself—keep Josué going, he’s a good guy. Cheers, Frank.
2 October 2006

Dr. John B. Heppner, Florida State Collector of Arthropods, Gainesville, Florida.
Vast fauna of Lepidoptera in the area of Champion’s collecting 100 years ago-excellent!
30 September 2006

Greg Johnson, USA.
Great Trip. We saw the Horned Guan and Azure-rumped Tanager. Josué es a great guide. Thanks to Lalo for his assistance in finding the Horned Guan.
20 August 2006

Rick & Brad Brekelbaum, Arkansas, USA.
We had a wonderful time enjoying the finca & birdwatching (got many lifers). The food and hospitality were great and Josué is a first class guide — we enjoyed so much being with him! We hope to return and bring more family.
27 July 2006

Maules & Bakemans, Poulsbo / Seattle Washington, USA.
Well worth the stop – We only wish we had enough time to spend the night.
19 July 2006

Francine Wildenborg, Netherlands.
This was a great experience. Beautiful reserve and great tour. Also the lunch was fabulous! Keep it like this and thank you very much!
1 May 2006

Timothy Barksdale, USA.
Hugo and I arrived on the 11th of April, we began to film with Sony high definition Camera and Fuji 42X lens. 1st day was quiet. Next day, at dawn, Lalo found Horned Guan and later I was able to film two Horned Guans!!!! Azure-rumped Tanager, Long-tailed Manakin, Blue-crowned Motmot, Rufous Saberwing and more. I’ll be back in 2007
17 April 2006

Juliet Petrencs, USA; Sabine Werzinger and Annegret vom Stein, Germany.
These buildings are great, lots of character, great books, decor. Cool bathrooms. Beautiful hikes, lots of birds. My favorite birding in Guatemala. Conchita's cooking muy rico! And finally some good coffee. We came with CAYAYA BIRDING and saw more than 100 birds in one day. Muy feliz!
11 December 2005

Kim Anderson and Alan van Norman, Bismarck, North Dakota.
Thank you so much for your gracious hospitality. We had a wonderful time birding! This is truely a paradise! Good food, and very friendly people. We will never forget you.
9 November 2005

Andy Sninsky and Inge Holecek, Monteverde, Costa Rica.
We had a terrific time birding on your finca. We will be writing it up in the paper as well as talking to our friends in Monteverde. Your food is tops and your birds are friendly. Keep in mind bird feeding boards and hummingbird feeders. We hope to see you in the future.
9 November 2005

Dr. and Mrs. Ingersoll III, Rhode Island, USA.
Most friendly and gracious hosts. Fantastic nature observations serve to please all levels of study. Comfortable accommodations and deightful cuisine. We hope to return soon. Muchas gracias.
30 October 2005

Cynthia Ryan, USA.
Had a wonderful stay - too short. Great birding - saw over 32 species in an afternoon and morning walk. Josué was a wonderful guide. Lots of fun to be with. Lovely service - peaceful place to be - thank you very much!
29 July 2005

Tom Jenner, England.
I had a great morning birdwatching with Ismael. We saw 67 species in only a few hours. I look forward to comming back.

Linda Vis, Netherlands.
Para mi la reserva es un lugar inolvidable, el "lodge" es muy comodo, fresco, buenas camas, muy limpio=perfecto! Tengo muy buenos recuerdos y regresaré! Hasta la proxima! Linda

Nicole Balloffet, Washington D.C., USA.
Thanks so much for showing us your beautiful reserve!! This is a beautiful place! The conservation, food and lodging were wonderful. Saludos, Nicole ballofet

Habacuc Ychante, Mexico
Entre varias opciones seguí una corazonada la cual consistía en conocer "Los Tarrales", fue una atinada elección venir aqui y conocer este hermosisimo lugar donde la Biodiversidad se hace posible con sus especies y animales y vegetales. Los senderos son accesibles y se puede observar mariposas, aves, reptiles, y capricoos de la naturaleza! Buena Suerte Habacuc

Daniela Diamente, Guatemala.
Casi es mi segunda casa aqui, y sigo llegando por lo precioso que es y por la gente tan amable que vive en Los Tarrales, Gracias

Barbara Chaves, USA.
This experience was beyond our expectations. We loved the exposure to village life on the plantation and the lodge and meals were terrific. Claudia (from CAYAYA BIRDING) provided us with a birding tour that was rich in diversity and experience. We loved her warmth and sense of humor and wonderfully creative expression. We will highly recommend this to friends and other birding enthusiasts in the USA!

The Los Tarrales tourism program has been mentioned in several international and national publications:

International media:

Cocker, M. (2008) Guatemala: a land of temples and toucans. BBC Wildlife 26 (8): 90-93.

Eisermann, K. (2007) Important Bird Areas in Guatemala. Winging It 19 (5): 11.

Eisermann, K. (2007) Vogelreichtum in Guatemala: endemische Arten, IBAs und nachhaltige Bewirtschaftung. Falke 54: 385-391. Online at: www.falke-journal.de (in German)

Bland, B. (2007) Guatemala: the new birding Mecca in Central America. Birding World 20 (5): 210-215.

Clark, B. & B. Clark (2006) Guatemala's natural private reserves. Winging It 18 (6): 20.

Mackenzie, C (2005) Low prices force guatemalan coffee farmers to seek alternative income. The Miami Herold, 4 July 2005: 8. Available online at: http://nl.newsbank.com

Guatemalan media:

Múnera, C. & R. Schiele (2008) Observación de aves en Guatemala. Instituto Guatemalteco de Turismo, Guatemala.

Burgos, C., F. Guzmán, C. Dallies & C. Mendizabal (2008) Observación del quetzal en Guatemala. Instituto Guatemalteco de Turismo, Guatemala.

Rigalt, C. (2007) Turismo de aves alza el vuelo. El Periodico, 31 Diciembre 2007: 2-3. Online at: www.elperiodico.com.gt

Pérez, L. (2007) Ecoturismo, alternativa de desarrollo. Prensa Libre, 2 Septiembre 2007. Online at: www.prensalibre.com

Beteta, L. (2005) Descubra una joya natural de la Costa Sur. Revista D (Prensa Libre, Guatemala) no. 30: 30-31. Online at: http://www.prensalibre.com

González, P. (2004) El Inguat se convierte en "tour" operador. El Periodico, 3 Noviembre 2004. Online at: www.elperiodico.com.gt

Los Tarrales has supported several scientific studies, resulting in the following publications:

Ornithology

Eisermann, K. & C. Avendaño (2007) Lista comentada de las aves de Guatemala - Annotated checklist of the birds of Guatemala. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona, Spain.

Eisermann, K., A. Burge & G. López (2007) Nesting records of Horned Guan (Oreophasis derbianus) on Atitlán volcano, Guatemala. Bulletin of the IUCN / BIRDLIFE / WPA Cracid Specialist Group 23: 13-24.

Rivas, J. A. & A. J. Cóbar (2007) Distribución y conservación del pavo de cacho (Oreophasis derbianus) en Guatemala. Pp. 10-14 In: J. Cornejo & E. Secaira (eds.) Memorias del III Simposium Internacional sobre Oreophasis derbianus. Comité Internacional para la Conservación de Oreophasis derbianus y su Hábitat. Veracruz, México.

Girón Solórzano, E. R. & R. Cárdenas (2007) Avances en la conservaciónn del hábitat del pavo de cacho (Oreophasis derbianus) en la cadena volcánica de Atitlán. Pp. 54-64 In: In: J. Cornejo & E. Secaira (eds.) Memorias del III Simposium Internacional sobre Oreophasis derbianus. Comité Internacional para la Conservación de Oreophasis derbianus y su Hábitat. Veracruz, México.

Eisermann, K. & D. M. Brooks (2006) Unusual and noteworthy nesting records for Guatemala. Cotinga 26: 48-51.

Eisermann, K. & C. Avendaño (2006) Diversidad de aves en Guatemala, con una lista bibliográfica. Pp. 525-623 In: E. Cano (ed.) Biodiversidad de Guatemala, Vol. 1. Universidad del Valle de Guatemala, Guatemala.

Eisermann, K., N. Herrera & O. Komar (2006) Highland Guan (Penelopina nigra). Pp. 85-90 In: D. M. Brooks (ed.) Conserving Cracids: the most threatened family of birds in the Americas. Miscellaneous Publications of the Houston Museum of Natural Science 6.

Seceira, E. (2005) Avances en la conservación del hábitat del Pavo de Cacho en la cadena volcánica de Atitlán, Guatemala. Pp. 18-25 In: J. Rivas, E. Secaira & J. Cornejo (eds.) Memorias II Simposium Internacional Oreophasis derbianus, 7-9 Abril 2005, Reserva Los Tarrales, Patulul, Suchitepéquez, Guatemala. The Nature Conservancy, Guatemala.

Sandoval, M. L. (2005) Experiencia en Educación Ambiental sobre el Pavo de Cacho y su Hábitat, Cadena Volcánica de Atitlán. Pp. 26-29 In: J. Rivas, E. Secaira & J. Cornejo (eds.) Memorias II Simposium Internacional Oreophasis derbianus, 7-9 Abril 2005, Reserva Los Tarrales, Patulul, Suchitepéquez, Guatemala. The Nature Conservancy, Guatemala.

Herpetology

Köhler, G. & M. Acevedo (2004) The anoles (genus Norops) of Guatemala. I. The species of the Pacific versant below 1500 m elevation. Salamandra 40 (2): 113-140.

Entomology

Wild, A. L. (2005) Taxonomic revision of the Pachycondyla apicalis species complex (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Zootaxa 834: 1-25.

End

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