Upcoming Events at Ecoturismo Yucatán
Fifth Yucatan Bird Festival– TOH November 30 through December 3, 2006.
Details of the next festival will be placed here soon!
SUMMARY REPORT OF THE FOURTH YUCATAN BIRD FESTIVAL – TOH
DECEMBER 1 – 4, 2005
The fourth edition of the Yucatan Bird Festival – TOH (Maya for the
Turquoise-browed Motmot), brought a tremendous increase in local
participation, including private and public sector organizations and
institutions that contribute to eco-tourism projects in the state.
TOH, Fourth Annual Yucatan Bird Festival
SUMMARY REPORT OF THE FOURTH YUCATAN BIRD FESTIVAL – TOH
DECEMBER 1 – 4, 2005
“UNITED FOR BIRDS”
The fourth edition of the Yucatan Bird Festival – TOH (Maya for the
Turquoise-browed Motmot), brought a tremendous increase in local
participation, including private and public sector organizations and
institutions that contribute to eco-tourism projects in the state. This
demonstrates that the first three festivals, along with ongoing efforts
at creating public awareness on the many attributes of bird watching,
is having a positive affect within the state.
The conferences by Humberto Berlanga and Manuel Grosselet the afternoon
of Dec. 1 were enthusiastically attended by 400 biology students,
conservationists, staff from the federal reserves in the state, outside
visitors and bird lovers in general. A hundred guests continued on to
the formal inauguration at the Hotel Casa del Balam, where there was a
special showing of Antonio Hidalgo’s marvelous bird photographs taken
at Chichén Itzá the previous spring. The three top finalists in the
photography competition, “Yucatan Birds and their Habitats”, in which
80 participants submitted a total of 369 photos, were also honored at
the event. Their photos, and those of all 20 finalists form an exhibit
at the “Olimpo” building, next to the Municipal Palace, where it is
estimated that thousands of people have viewed them.
Approximately 80 people divided into eight groups early on Dec. 2 in
order to go birding on the extensive grounds of Haciendas Tzalamcab and
San José Tecoh outside the 16th c. town of Izamal. All met up for a
lively luncheon of delicious Yucatecan dishes at the Kinich Kamoo
Restaurant. From there, most everyone drove on to Chichén Itzá for the
conference by Paul Wood, which served as a visual introduction to the
birds of the region.
A brief visit was made afterwards to the wonderful, inter-active
educational workshop on birds that Niños y Crías A.C. organized for the
children in the two towns bordering Chichén Itzá – Xcalacoop and Piste
during the entire week. It was a delight to see how excited the
children were and how intensely they participated in the different
learning games.
That evening, half of the 7 teams participating in the annual
bird-a-thon (xoc ch’ich’ in Maya), composed of 9 to 10 people, headed
out to El Cuyo, Río Lagartos and Dzilam Bravo. The others stayed in the
area of Chichén Itzá and drove out to the coast before dawn the next
day. The competition lasted from 5:00 a.m. Dec. 3 to 10:00 a.m. Dec. 4
and the object was to register the maximum number of species possible
within the state among the members of each team.
The winners of the xoc ch’ich’ were announced at the awards luncheon
held on Dec. 4 outside in the lovely gardens of the 16th c. Hotel
Hacienda Chichén with approximately 75 people in attendance. The
winning team registered 187 species while the runner-ups listed 185
species. In total, 6 of the 7 teams that participated identified
150 or more species, and altogether, 270 species were identified. This
was quite outstanding and demonstrates the increased knowledge of the
local guides that led the teams. Documentation for a potential new
species for the region was submitted and is under examination. Numerous
awards were given out for different categories, as well as special
recognition trophies for donors. All the awards were produced by local
artisans, with the exception of the “toh” photo donated by Antonio
Hidalgo.
It is hoped that even more visitors will join us for the Fifth Yucatan
Bird Festival, which is scheduled to take place November 30 through
December 3, 2006.
BARBARA MACKINNNON.
Bird Checklist Chichen Itza
Bird Checklist Ria Lagartos
Bird Checklist Izamal
Bird Checklist Xcambo
SEE DETAILS OF THE 3RD. BIRD FESTIVAL
Birding list of the Xoc Chiích with participating teams, download PDF visible on the lower right.
1st Annual International Festival of Arts
From January 5th to the 23rd, Merida will host a unique first-time cultural event. The event is the “1st Annual Arts Festival - Merida Cultural" and it is a part of the continuing efforts by the citizens and government of Merida to involve the arts in all the activities of the city.