Ian Loyd spent 3 months volunteering at REGUA as an assistant bird guide.   Ian also wished to gain valuable experience in ecotourism and to immerse himself in a conservation project doing its best to save and raise awareness for a forgotten forest (the Mata Atlantica) which is a home for some of the highest levels of biodiversity on earth.

During three months at the reserve he spent most of his time showing the guests around the many trails and habitats of the reserve to try and find them some of the most exciting birds and wildlife that can be seen in the reserve.

Ian sums up his experiences:
“I had great pleasure in guiding a mix of visitors from different areas of the world and I found almost every day I would see either a new species or different behaviour. The guests varied greatly in both their level of knowledge and type of interest, in my time I encountered beginners and very experienced birders reaching 6000 species on their life list. Photographers, general naturalists, and enthusiasts for other taxonomic groups. As a volunteer guide, you needed patience, tact, and understanding of the wishes of guests, in addition to as much identification knowledge as possible.”