For our February program we welcome back guest speakers Sam Wilson and Margeaux Maerz who will help us explore Northern South America which has the highest biodiversity on the planet – Colombia and Peru are number one and number two for bird species diversity. Once notorious for drug cartels, Pablo Escobar, and violence, Colombia is now welcoming tourists back in thanks to a renewed peace agreement between FARC rebels and the government. Peru’s tourism industry has boomed with world renowned destinations and UNESCO world heritage sites like Machu Picchu. Come enjoy a photographic journey from urban centers to the Andes cloud forest and off-the-grid wilderness locations in the Amazon basin where it truly feels like stepping back in time to a place where giant macaws, river dolphins, big cats, and rare primates still roam undisturbed by human presence.

Sam Wilson has been working in conservation and environmental education for the past 10 years, including for NJ Audubon as a naturalist at the Nature Center in Cape May, New Jersey and at Camp Denali in Denali National Park as a Naturalist Guide. Sam is also an occasional writer and photographer for magazines like Cape May Magazine, Audubon, and American Birding Association’s Birding.

Margeaux Maerz is originally from Vestal, but has found a way to spend most of her time traveling. After graduating from the University of Georgia with her degree in Ecology, Margeaux worked as an environmental educator and naturalist guide for various non-for-profits and government organizations along the east coast and abroad. Margeaux worked for 3 years at Camp Denali as a Naturalist Guide and a variety of other environmental programs.

Sam and Margeaux have traveled extensively in the past 3 years in Alaska, Asia, and North America, all in pursuit of birds and wildlife. Their most recent adventure included a 3-month stint traveling South America – from the Andes to the Amazon.

Please email bcnatclub@gmail.com to get a link to join this meeting. You will be able to join the meeting beginning at 7:00pm and the talk will begin at 7:15pm.