Birdwatching as a Catalyst for Sustainable Development

A conversation with WhereNext consultant, biologist, and The Birders Show host Diego Calderon.

A recent episode of The Birders Show featuring Doña Dora’s birdwatching venture that has helped her family emerge from poverty and transition from subsistence farmers to small entrepreneurs.

Dora Londoño’s small house is located along a remote stretch of a stomach-churning but scenic road that runs next to the Farallones National Park.

Recently, it’s become a birdwatching mecca for tourists who make day trips from the nearby city of Cali and arrive as early as 6 a.m.

After sipping coffee and trying Londoño’s hearty empanadas, visitors head to a small terrace on the back end of the house. The terrace faces a lush cloud forest with a treasure trove of surprises.

Within minutes, visitors can spot several species of hummingbirds buzzing around and inserting their needle-like beaks into feeders that Dora has set up in her backyard.

Half a dozen larger species perch on the trees that tower above the small house, like golden tanagers and green honeycreepers, which swoop in to nibble on small pieces of banana and papaya left for them on the branches.

Londoño, affectionately known as Doña Dora, charges visitors a small entrance fee and sells them breakfast and lunch.

For this longtime resident of the Farallones region, birdwatching has become a profitable way of life, encouraging her and her neighbors to preserve the local forest.

“I never believed so many people would come here just to see birds,” Londoño said in a recent episode of The Birders Show, WhereNext’s YouTube series dedicated to making birding more accessible to everyone.

“People who come here tell their friends about our place and make posts about us on social media. And now I can say I make a living from birds. And not just me. My family and my children are also involved.”

Doña Dora’s birdwatching venture has helped her family emerge from poverty and transition from subsistence farmers to small entrepreneurs.

The small business also highlights the potential of birdwatching as a sustainable source of income for rural communities, says Diego Calderon, a biologist and nature guide who has led birding tours of Colombia since 2007.

“I think businesses like these are laudable and worthy of applause,” Calderon said. “It’s a beautiful way for people to feel empowered and exercise sovereignty over their territory.”

Diego with The Birders Show former co-host, Chris Bell, Doña Dora and her family outside her house near Cali, Colombia.

José Luis Pushaina, a member of the Wayuu Indigenous community of the Guajira Peninsula in northernmost Colombia and northwest Venezuela.

Colombia has become increasingly popular among birdwatchers worldwide since a peace deal was signed in 2016 between the government and the FARC guerilla group, making rural areas rich in wildlife more accessible to all.

The government has also invested in campaigns promoting the country as an ecotourism and birdwatching destination, highlighting that Colombia is home to around 2000 bird species, more than any other country.

Calderon, who is also the host of The Birders Show and a consultant for WhereNext, warns that building a successful birdwatching venture takes time and requires a specific set of conditions.

“Many people think that if you live in Colombia and have a farm where there are some birds, you’re set, and you will have tourists visiting you because this is the country of birds,” Calderon said. “But it’s not that simple.”

Diego mentoring an inspiring birder in Colombia’s coffee region.

According to Calderon, some factors entrepreneurs should consider when trying to set up a birdwatching venture are its accessibility, whether it is located along established birdwatching routes, and whether it can provide visitors with the opportunity to view species that cannot be found elsewhere.

This last item is particularly important for attracting more specialized birdwatchers, who tend to spend the most money on their trips.

“Not all of the rural places in Colombia have the same potential for bird tourism,” Calderon said.

In Doña Dora's case, her home’s location, just 55km away from the city of Cali, helps to lure visitors who can come to the area on day trips. She also benefits from being on a route known as the Anchicaya Canyon, where there are other spots that are popular with tourists and birders.

Another big advantage of Doña Dora’s place is the presence of the Toucan Barbet, a colorful and clownish species that can only be found in Colombia and Ecuador.

Over the years, Doña Dora’s has built a reputation as the best place to spot this comical and exotic bird, which is featured in one of the murals on the home’s colorful facade.

Her children found a family of toucan barbets nesting near their property. When the tree the toucans were nesting on fell, they took it closer to the house so the birds could build another nest there.

“Doña Dora and her family have been very good at reading birdwatcher's needs,” said Calderon, who has also led birdwatching expeditions in a dozen Latin American countries, including Mexico, Panama, Venezuela, and Peru.

Birding in his home state of Antioquia.

Calderon has also worked with former members of the FARC guerrilla group who are setting up ecotourism projects. The biologist and guide advised the former rebels on how to cater to tourists' needs and joined them on birdwatching outings.

Back in 2004, when Calderon was a biology student, he was kidnapped by the FARC while he was on an expedition in northeastern Colombia.

Calderon, a botany professor, and a local guide were held by the rebels, who initially believed they were spies but then held the group for ransom.

Meanwhile, scientists in Colombia and abroad held protests to seek their release.

Calderon said that being held hostage for 88 days made him more “stoic” and “patient” when it comes to tackling life’s challenges. It also made him curious about working with the former rebels after they made their peace with the government.

Following the 2016 peace deal, many of the FARC rebels moved into small villages with prefabricated homes known as ETCRs, where they started to set up agricultural, industrial, and ecotourism projects.

So far, Calderon says that an ETCR in the north of Colombia, known as Tierra Grata, has the potential to make an income from birdwatching because it is located along another route popular with birdwatchers.

In the dry forests surrounding the Tierra Grata ETCR, a rare ground-dwelling bird known as the Red-Legged Tinamou, along with other endemic and rare species, can also be spotted.

“What they need there now is someone who really takes on the responsibility for a birdwatching project,” Calderon said.

Diego Calderón was researching birds in a remote area of Colombia when he was kidnapped by FARC. Years later, he returned to meet former FARC members and find some meaning in what happened.

As the host of The Birders Show, Calderon is constantly looking for new ventures that can be featured on the YouTube series, financed by WhereNext and sponsored by provincial governments and tourism boards that want to attract more visitors to their regions.

Currently, The Birders Show is planning a series of episodes with the Colombian Department of Caldas that will feature some of the smaller, family-owned lodges in that region.

“You need several elements to come together” for a successful birding venture, Calderon said. “But when it happens, it is something beautiful to behold.”

As the host of the birders show, Diego is constantly looking for new ventures that can be featured on the YouTube series, financed by WhereNext and partly by Calderon and sponsored by provincial governments and tourism boards that want to attract more visitors to their regions.