Responsible Birding Cuba Project
Cuban Adventures initiated Responsible Birding Cuba in 2024. It is an educational ecotourism project provided free to local Cuban birdwatching guides and nature tourism professionals. It provides training and accreditation in responsible birding practices, sustainable tourism, and ways to improve the service provided to foreign visitors.
Our Motivation
The project was born out of a desire of Cuban Adventures:
- To make further positive contributions to sustainability, nature conservation, and enhance ecotourism in Cuba.
- Improve the quality of service provided by local birdwatching guides to Cuban Adventures customers who participate in Birdwatching Tours in Cuba.
Background - Local Birding Guides in Cuba
To practice birding in many of the preserved natural areas of Cuba, you are required to do so in the company of an official national park guide who specialises in the local flora and fauna. Most of these guides are not ornithologists nor biologists, but rather locals who have lived their whole lives in the countryside and who, through their own personal experience, have a deep knowledge of the local environment. Some used to be hunters of the local wildlife. International tourism, environmental laws, and the Government’s formation of a national system of protected areas, have given people in these remote communities an alternative way to earn a living. However they don't always receive formal training in customer service, birdwatching, nor in responsible practices for nature observation.
Rectifying Unethical Practices and Identifying Aspects to Improve
Examples of practices and behaviours by local guides in Cuba that came to our attention and caused concern were:
- The overuse of bird vocalisation playback apps to attract birds in heavily-birded areas.
- Disturbing nocturnal birds (such as owls) during the day so that tourists can view them, causing stress to the birds while they should be resting.
- Not keeping a large enough distance away from the birds while observing them.
- Using flashlights at night on nocturnal birds.
- Not keeping updated with the latest international birdwatching practices.
Responsible Birding Training Sessions
These workshops are provided by qualified Cuban Adventures staff to local birding and nature guides in key birding destinations in Cuba. They are based on the ABA (the American Birding Association) code of ethics and make use of the experience that our Cuba tour guides have in working with international tourists from all over the world that have an interest in sustainability and nature conservation.
The subject areas presented in the responsible birding training sessions are as follows.
The first Responsible Birding Cuba workshop was delivered in October 2024 in collaboration with the Sierra del Rosario Protected Area of Managed Resources, in Las Terrazas (western Cuba).
TOPICS COVERED
- Functions of the Local Birding Guide
- Interaction of the Local Birding Guide with the Tour Leader
- Interaction of the Local Birding Guide with clients.
- Techniques for Birdwatching
- Suitable clothing
- Equipment
- Cuban Adventures and Responsible Tourism
- Characteristics of foreign Birdwatchers
- Code of Ethics for Birdwatching
- Good Practices
- Unsuitable conduct
By the Numbers
8
LOCAL GUIDES ACCREDITED SO FAR
1
WORKSHOPS HELD
The Creator
This project is the brainchild of outstanding Cuban Adventures tour guide Yuri Napoles. Yuri's passion for birdwatching, his background in biology, his love of Cuba and its nature, and now his vast experience as a tour leader, were the perfect combination that led him to ask for support from Cuban Adventures to realize this project that is provided to local guides in Cuba free of charge. See Yuri's guide profile for more information about him.