Alejandro Solano

Born and raised in rural Costa Rica, Alejandro’s interest in birds was sparked by seeing Resplendent Quetzal and Three-wattled Bellbirds in the famous cloudforest of Monteverde, where he started his career as a naturalist guide. After gaining a wealth of experience leading trips throughout his homeland, he enrolled in university and further studies which led to a career in ecology and sustainable development. While at university he met his Ecuadorean wife, Agustina, who motivated him to move to Ecuador, where he has resided for the last 15 years. During his prolonged stay he has been actively involved in studying Ecuador’s avifauna, publishing more than 50 manuscripts in different ornithological journals. In the last ten years Alejandro has helped his wife to run a reserve where they both live, devoting a great deal of their time to the creation of a wildlife corridor implementing habitat restoration practices involving the establishment of natural food plants. His passion for birds has taken him to the length and breadth of South America, although his true area of expertise, and where he is amongst the sharpest of all bird guides, is in the most biodiverse regions of Colombia, Ecuador and Perú. Alejandro leads our annual Northern Peru tour, along with some of our birding tours in Ecuador and Colombia.