Avocet & Peregrine is a hardcore birding company located in Goa, India.
Goa is less than a dot on the map of the world. Yet it hosts almost 4% of the bird species of the world. Surprising, because of a limited geographical spread and yet because of a diverse range of ecosystems ranging from coastal, mangrove, estuarine, grassland, wetland and the unique Western Ghats complex. The species counts goes to almost 500 including 17 species endemic or near-endemic to the region. Key birds include the Malabar Trogon, Malabar Parakeet, Malabar Grey and Malabar Pied Hornbills, Asian Fairy Bluebird, Vigor’s Sunbird, Orange Minivet, Lesser Adjutant Storks, Nilgiri Wood Pigeon, Brown-backed Needletail, Oriental Bay Owl, Red Spurfowl, Mountain Imperial Pigeons, Sri Lanka Frogmouth, Grey-headed Bulbul, Square tailed Bulbul, Wynaad Laughingthrush, White-bellied Woodpecker, White-bellied Blue-flycatcher, White-bellied Treepie, eight kingfisher species including Collared, Oriental Dwarf, and Blue-eared and a host of shorebirds.
We conduct guided birding day trips and birding stays while you bird in Goa (India) ranging from a leisurely lazy pace to almost a drop-dead marathon birding! We curate bird watching tours to the best-known birding hotspots of Goa such as Bondla, Carambolim, Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary, Zuari River beside the lesser-known but productive birding hotspots such as Bhagwan Mahaveer National Park (Molem / Tambdi Surla), Curtorim Wetlands, Cotigao, Netravali, and Socorro Plateau. With Avocet & Peregrine, you will bird with the very best where our guides are top-ranked eBirders in the State. We do trips beyond Goa – to the best birding hide in the country at the Old Magazine House at Ganeshgudi / Dandeli and conduct expeditions for birding, elephants, and tigers in Karnataka with Jungle Lodges & Resorts.
We have a combined experience of 25 years of birding and have been commercially birding for the last 4 years. We have pioneered, explored, and mapped new birding trails, many of which are followed on our bird walks with our clients. Our clients come from a wide geographical spectrum ranging from the United States, Canada, France, Britain, Russia, Uganda, Kazakhstan, UAE, Australia, and Singapore besides clients from across India. For the community, Avocet & Peregrine is associated with bird rescue, environmental affirmative action through the Biodiversity Action Network of Goa (BANG), curating a 20,000 strong Birds of Goa and the 6000 strong Wildlife of Goa Facebook groups. Savio Fonseca of Avocet & Peregrine has co-authored the highly acclaimed Photographic Guide to the Birds of Goa and is a member of the Committee compiling the Goa State Biodiversity Strategy & Action Plan for the Government of Goa.
