What is your favorite bird species? 

Usually the one I have not seen yet! But more often, the one I happen to have in front of me. In Patagonia, where I’m from, there are a few species I have more of a history with, but I don’t really have a favorite bird. I do, however, have favorite habitats (and their respective birds): deserts and high Andean places, and cloud forests anywhere ranking at the top.

Hooded Grebe

What is your name, and where do you live?

Santiago Imberti. I’m originally from Río Gallegos in southern Patagonia, Argentina, but I now live even further south in Punta Arenas, Chilean Patagonia.

What are the main regions or locations you cover as a bird guide?

Argentina and Chile mostly, especially Patagonia, but I do travel all over the world leading or guiding trips based on ships.

White-bellied Seedsnipe

How long have you been a bird guide?

A long time! I started guiding when I was 17, mostly as a fly fishing guide, but soon realized people also hired bird guides and morphed into one soon after.

How did you get into bird guiding?

Birds had always been a passion, and as I was saying, when some British fishermen I was guiding who were also birders started asking more about birds than fish, the switch happened soon for me. This was also helped by the fact that there were no local bird guides in southern Argentinean Patagonia back then, and the demand was intense.

Yellow-bridled Finch

What are the aspects of being a bird guide that you like best? Which aspects do you dislike most?

I enjoy being outdoors looking for birds, and that is natural for me, so it is always a pleasure to share them with people who also enjoy that. Probably one of the things most guides dislike, including me too, is logistics, especially when there are issues and things do not go according to plan.

Black-browed Albatross

What are the top 5-10 birds in your region that are the most interesting for visiting birders?

Magellanic ‘Magic’ Plover, Austral ‘Grail’ and ‘Holy’ Hooded Grebe, as I call this special trio, but also the very rare Fuegian Snipe, the beautiful White-bridled Finch, and the sometimes hard-to-get White-bellied Seedsnipe. Also, the rest of the Andean forest and Patagonian Steppe endemics that can be seen here while looking for the aforementioned. Tawny-throated and Rufous-chested dotterels are two favorites of mine and also of most people who manage to get a close look at them! 

Magellanic Plover

Can you outline at least one typical birdwatching trip in your area? Please briefly describe the locations, the key birds, and the approximate duration of such a trip

A typical trip in southern Patagonia will very much depend on weather. A week-long trip is necessary to lightly cover the three main habitats, namely the steppe, the forests, and the fjords; Patagonia is a huge place! Sites like Parque Nacional Torres del Paine that are world-known usually are the attraction to most people, but aside from the fantastic views, the reality is most birds are found easily in less crowded or expensive places. Day trips around Punta Arenas can be a great way to sample the area, as you can cover forest, some seabirds, and the steppe in a single outing, including sought-after birds like Magellanic Woodpecker, Black-browed Albatross, both Steamer ducks, Magellanic Plover, Austral Canastero, among many others.

Austral Canastero

What other suggestions can you give to birders interested in your area? 

Although most trips to Patagonia usually happen in the spring (September-November), the summer is productive too, and although some birds are not as vocal then, they are definitely still present and can easily be found. The beginning of the fall (February- March) usually brings long spells of calm weather, days that are still long, and birds are grouping for migration, which can be quite amazing in itself and therefore also easy to find.

Austral Pygmy-Owl

If any readers of 10,000 Birds are interested in birding with you, how can they best contact you?

You can contact me at [email protected] or phone/whatsapp +56942044376

Photo of Santiago by Pat Webster. All others by Santiago