WINGS Birding Tours Worldwide

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WINGS Birding Tours Worldwide

WINGS is an expert international birding tour operator, offering guided tours worldwide. Our leaders are exceptionally knowledgeable, friendly and enthusiastic.

Our Tucson office is staffed from 10AM – 3:30PM MST, Mon – Fri: +1-520-320-9868
866-547-9868 (toll-free from US & Canada) They have extensive bird-tour experience and handle group logistics seamlessly; you benefit from a satisfying, worry-free trip. Our tours are well-organized to the smallest detail, and a number of our jaunts combine birding with music, history, and culture. WINGS tours are at o

nce brief, lengthy; vigorous, peaceful; profound, and fun. Near or far, a WINGS tour is above all, exciting and superbly rewarding.

07/07/2025

On our "Northwest Ecuador in Summer" tour we inevitably see a lot of amazing birds, but then there are some that stand out as truly iconic, the kind of birds that make your jaw hang open in wonder when you see them for the first time. Our visit to the famous Refugio Paz de las Aves near Nanegalito was a day to remember, as we were lucky to see several of those most spectacular species that will surely be imprinted among the most vivid memories of the trip. We began with an early morning visit to a lek of the bizarre Andean Cock-of-the-Rock, and then with patience and the help of the Paz brothers we were able to see three species of secretive antpittas. Finally in the afternoon we finished off the day at a small private reserve near Mindo, which is currently hosting an active Sunbittern nest.
- Scott Olmstead, Tour Leader

To learn more about this tour and others, visit our website here: https://wingsbirds.com/tours/ecuador-northwest-andes-summer

06/28/2025

Success in Sichuan! Paul Holt reports on our recently-concluded tour: Although spectacular Wawu Shan, with its cloud forest and seas of bamboo, its comfortable hotel and its Sichuan Treecreepers, Red-winged Laughingthrushes, Black-headed Sibias and multiple parrottbills was the first of the seven very different sites that we visited on this comprehensive tour, things really came alive at Labahe, the second. It was there that we really saw our first gamebirds – Lady Amherst’s Pheasants and a resplendent male Temminck’s Tragopan; our first fast-moving mixed species feeding flocks and both of our magnificent Red Pandas…We’d move on from there to find Snow Partridges, Chinese Monals, Firethroats and both White-browed and Crested Tit-warblers as well as the enigmatic Three-banded, one of eleven species of rosefinch we’d see. Up on the Plateau, Black-necked Cranes, Saker Falcons, Tibetan Partridges, black-backed Citrine Wagtails and Tibetan Larks as well as a confiding pair of Pink-tailed Finches entertained. Great infrastructure, superb hospitality, a first class ground agent, some outstanding food and a fabulous group rounded off a fantastic tour!

06/10/2025

Our Maine and New Hampshire tour is currently underway, and Scott Olmstead writes with an update: After looking ahead with anxiety at forecasts of possible rain, the day of our outing to Machias Seal Island arrived and we were graced with dry (even if somewhat foggy) conditions. Calm seas meant the highly anticipated landing on the island was possible, and we were rewarded with quality up-close-and-personal observations of Atlantic Puffins, Razorbills, and Arctic Terns, among others. This really is a bucket list day of birding!

06/02/2025

May 2025 saw two departures of the always popular Owls and Warblers tour ramble its way across the Sky Islands of Southeast Arizona. Skye Haas and Louie Dombroksi ran near concurrent tours and between the two groups, tallied in a very impressive 220 species of birds as well as a delightful array of other species of wildlife. View the detailed report here on our website:
https://wingsbirds.com/field-reports/arizona-owls-warblers-roundup

05/14/2025

Paul Holt recaps the recent Taiwan tour: Taiwan Barbet, arguably one of the island’s smartest, was the first of the endemics we saw; Taiwan Blue Magpie the second, with Grey-cheeked Fulvetta and the imaginatively named Taiwan Hwamei, Taiwan Bamboo Partridge, Taiwan Scimitar Babbler and Taiwan Whistling Thrush collectively rounding off our very first day on the island! Oh and then there was a superb encounter with two Malayan Night Herons and two inquisitive Slaty-legged Crakes…By the end of the tour we’d seen 30 of the island’s 32 endemics with just the ever elusive Taiwan Thrush and a heard-only Taiwan Bullfinch eluding us. More than that we’d had great looks at almost all of them including the island’s often secretive gamebirds. Taiwan Partridge was seen superbly well and early on, up to three Swinhoe’s Pheasants were seen on four dates and up to seven Taiwan Bamboo Partridges on seven dates. Despite having a magnificent male Swinhoe’s Pheasant that we could have touched as it walked right under our picnic lunch table it was the stunning, ‘bird of the tour’ winning Mikado Pheasants, that really stole the show. Other goodies included the very recently split Taiwan Bush Robin and a myriad of endemic subspecies such as the distinctive ardens form of Maroon Oriole and all amidst some stunning scenery and in great company. We’d travelled a whopping 1200 miles and explored a large proportion of the Beautiful Island (Isla Formosa), had some fabulous mammal encounters and eaten some delicious food. I think that it’s safe to say that every last one of us had been smitten…

04/24/2025

Susan Myers shares highlights from the recently completed tour to Vietnam:

Our Vietnam birding adventure began in Hanoi and took us across the country’s diverse landscapes. Van Long Wetland Reserve gave us our first sightings of Asian Openbills and White-throated Kingfishers, with a Delacour’s Langur bonus.

At Cuc Phuong National Park, Vietnam’s oldest, we observed Green-eared Barbet, Rufous-throated Fulvetta, Tonkin Scaly-breasted Partridge, Snowy-browed Flycatcher, Fujian Niltava, and Annam Limestone Babbler.

After a productive stop at the picturesque Phong Nha National Park—famous for karst landscapes and cave systems—we finally located the elusive Sooty Babbler, as well as the very skulking Short-tailed Scimitar-Babbler.

Highlights at Sa Mu Pass in Central Vietnam included Golden Babbler, and Silver-eared Mesia.

Ngoc Linh was a tour highlight, producing stunning Golden-winged and Red-tailed Laughingthrushes, endemic Black-crowned Barwing, and Grey-headed Parrotbills.

Moving westwards towards the border with Cambodia, Yok Don National Park’s dry dipterocarp forest yielded Great Slaty Woodpecker and the rare White-rumped Falcon. We then explored Da Lat Plateau and Bi Doup National Park, where a stunning Blue Pitta was seen.

Finally, Cat Tien National Park delivered spectacular sightings including Bar-bellied and Blue-rumped Pittas, Siamese Fireback, Germain’s Peacock-Pheasant, and Green Peafowl.

From montane forests to tropical lowlands, Vietnam dazzled with its avian riches, rare endemics, and unforgettable birding moments.

04/15/2025

Susan Myers reports from the recent Northern India tour:

"Our nearly three-week journey through northern India was a vibrant mix of birding, wildlife encounters, cultural sights, and adventure. We began in chaotic Delhi and made our way to Agra, where the iconic Taj Mahal lived up to expectations despite the crowds. At Chambal River, Indian Skimmers, River Terns, and Gharials set the tone for exciting sightings.

Bharatpur’s Keoladeo National Park offered two full days of incredible birding—Sarus Cranes, Dusky Eagle-Owls, Painted Storks, and more, with a bonus afternoon featuring Bluethroats and Red-headed Buntings. Ranthambore brought thrilling safaris with a Bengal Tiger lounging by water, a Sloth Bear and cub, and an Asiatic Leopard—all alongside Painted Spurfowl and Jungle Owlets. At Corbett, we saw Wallcreeper, Ibisbill, and Himalayan specialties like Yellow-bellied Fairy-Fantail and Immaculate Cupwing. Nainital and Pangot gave us Himalayan highland birds, including Cheer Pheasants, Upland Pipits, and flocks of Altai Accentors. Sattal added forest gems like Rufous-throated Partridge and Brown Wood-Owl.

We wrapped up with productive birding at Sultanpur, spotting Sarus Cranes, Striated Babblers, Moustached Warblers, and Sind Sparrow. From riverbanks to mountain cliffs, India’s wildlife dazzled us at every stop. Challenging at times but immensely rewarding - India made every moment count."

03/17/2025

Jake Mohlmann shares some highlights from the recent Hawaii tour: We just had an amazing 8 days spent exploring three of Hawai’i’s diverse islands. We started out on Oahu where one doesn’t have to go very far from the capital Honolulu to look for some of the forest birds.

A highlight of the tour was sitting on Oahu’s coast having our fresh poke lunch while watching the aerial breeding displays of Red-tailed Tropicbirds. While taking in the show, a surprise Red-billed Tropicbird made an appearance flying by at eye level…twice.

The Big Island held the most bird species of the trip, with a nice mix of introduced and native birds to search for. Game birds were quite popular with their varied plumages and tendency to be easier to spot than others.

The spot voted best of the trip was hands down Hakalau National Wildlife Refuge. Not only was it our favorite spot, but also gave us views of the bird of the trip. The oddly shaped ‘Akiapola’au was found thanks to some distinctive calls of a young bird calling to its parents. We tracked it down and enjoyed watching the family forage in the moss-laden trees. Another native forest bird here was the Hawaiian Creeper, feeding very much like nuthatches from the mainland.

We also take time to do a proper pelagic trip off the coast of Kona. Not every tour group does this, but we are always reminded why we take the time for this unique experience. The trip this year was highlighted by Cocos B***y, Christmas Shearwater, Buller’s and Hawaiian Petrels, and a constant supply of Leach’s Storm-Petrels flushing from just in front of the boat.

This tour also affords a unique opportunity to see Laysan Albatross where they breed. On Kaua’i the locals protect this species as they often nest in people’s yards. We found one of these ‘kiwi-like’ chicks while it sat in close proximity of an adult’s watchful eye. Also on this island we saw Hawaiian Duck, the only duck native to the areas we visit on this tour.

Many participants reached big mile stones in their ABA careers, from reaching 600 species to a lofty 750 for one. Hawaii continues to be a great place to add many unique birds to your USA list.

03/11/2025

Skye Haas reports from his recently completed tour to Belize: I could not be happier with how the WINGS 2025 tour to Belize went! This small and enchanting nation along the Caribbean coast hosts a wealth of birds, forests and wonderful people, as well as ancient ruins of the Mayan civilization that are amazing to behold. Our tour is rather extensive, journeying from the lowland savannas and extensive open marshlands of Crooked Tree, to the depths of the jungles of La Milpa, Caracol, and Bocawina; up high to the conifer forests and waterfalls of the Mountain Pine Reserve and down to the coastal beaches of Hopkins Village along the Sittee River. In doing so, we tallied in an impressive 335 species of birds- colorful tropical species like Keel-billed Toucan, Golden-hooded Tanagers and the always elusive Lovely Cotinga; North American migrants like Magnolia Warblers, Yellow-bellied Flycatchers and Indigo Buntings; to genuine rarities like Cave Swallows, Loggerhead Shrike, Bicolored Hawk and the first solidly documented Short-eared Owl ever for Belize, (with the last reports coming from 25 years ago!); as well as excellent looks at legendary species that lure us to the tropics in the first place, birds like Pheasant Cuckoo, Agami Heron, Stygian Owl and Tody Motmot!

03/06/2025

Steve Howell reports from his second Mexico: San Blas tour this year—and is already looking forward to returning in 2026. Hope you'll join us! Please visit our website to learn more about this perennially popular tour (link in comments)

02/18/2025

Steve Howell reports from the conclusion of another wonderful tour to Honduras. Read on below for some of the highlights of the trip.

02/11/2025

Our WINGS Arizona: A Winter Week tour with Jake Mohlmann just completed an incredible week of birding and sightseeing throughout the southeastern portion of Arizona. A sampling of hotspots included Portal in the Chiricahuas, Patagonia Lake State Park, and the Huachuca Mountains all the way up to Montezuma Pass.

We had good looks at multiple species of thrashers during the week, the Sandhill Crane show at Whitewater Draw had as many birds as ever, and the range-restricted Arizona Woodpecker took the cake for most wanted.

It’s always a good thing when the bird of the trip is a tough decision. Maybe it was the Rufous-capped Warbler, likely only one of a few in the country, that came in to catch bugs at its favored little puddle in Florida Canyon… or maybe it was the male Elegant Trogon, just as scarce in winter, that we finally tracked down after searching several spots throughout the week.

To join the 2026 Arizona: A Winter Week tour, visit our website here: https://wingsbirds.com/tours/arizona-winter-week

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