I'm the Grinch! Go Birding in December in Cambodia or Bhutan!

Plastic Christmas trees, congestion in department stores, traffic jams, anxiety over Christmas gifts, too much food, and if you are in the northern hemisphere, way too f#%*& cold. Call me the Grinch, but I am scheming ways to escape the Christmas craze. I'd rather go birding.
What could be better than escaping to Buddhist countries like Cambodia or Bhutan and going birding? It is honey for the soul.

Cambodia offers Angkor Wat and a chance to see endangered birds like Bengal Florican, Giant and White-shouldered Ibises, Coral-billed Ground-Cuckoo, and the impressive Vulture Restaurant.

Bhutan offers serene mountain scenery, Buddhist temples, and birds like Ibisbill and various pheasants. December is a great time of year to see large flocks of the endangered Black-necked Crane, which is only there in winter.

Both programs have been greatly improved and expanded so you get more endemics and more regionally special birds. A hiking extension for endemic birds is offered in Cambodia, and Bhutan can be combined with a pre-trip or post-trip to India or Nepal with our local agents.

Check out the programs for Cambodia and Bhutan on the 7WondersBirding.com website.

7 Wonders Birding 2026.

I am finally catching my breath after a whirlwind of guiding, planning, and scouting for next year’s adventures. As promised, this week’s update is all about our upcoming 7 Wonders Birding tours for 2026—with a sneak peek at what makes each one special. If you’re dreaming of new destinations, iconic birds, and a splash of culture (some tours), read on!

Philippines – January 2026
Home to the spectacular Philippine Eagle and a host of island endemics. The main Mindanao tour has a few spots and we also offer extension to the other islands. Check out the itinerary.
 

Japan Winter – Early March 2026
Hundreds of Steller’s Eagles, dancing Red-crowned Cranes, and the magic of Hokkaido in snow. Our February departure filled up fast, but our March departure has two more spots. Read about the Japan winter tour.
 

Taiwan – March 2026
Taiwan is a hotspot for endemics, including the striking Mikado Pheasant and Swinhoe’s Pheasant, plus a chance to enjoy the island’s stunning mountains and delicious cuisine. I just came back from a scouting trip in Taiwan and although October is not the best time of year it was a great trip allowing to check out some sites I had not visited before. I have now expanded the program to ensure we have a high probability to get all of mainland endemics. Read more about the Taiwan tour. 

Southern Spain – April 2026
Andalusia in spring is unbeatable for raptors, the elusive Iberian Lynx, and the Moorish wonders of Cordoba and Alhambra. We’ll track down Spanish Imperial Eagle, Lammergeier, and Great Bustard, with plenty of tapas to fuel our birding. Explore the Spain tour.
 

Petra & Jordan – April 2026
Experience the birdlife of the Middle East while exploring the ancient wonders of Petra and Wadi Rum. Expect desert specialties, Nubian Ibex, and a fascinating mix of history and wildlife. There should be a good number of migrating birds in April. Read more on the website.

Uganda – June/July 2026
One week, three icons: Shoebill, Gorillas, and Chimps. This is the ultimate quick trip for those short on time but big on wildlife dreams. If you can spare a few extra days, we’ll chase Albertine Rift endemics on an extended itinerary. See the Uganda highlights.

Pantanal & Jaguar Safari – July 2026
If you want to see Jaguars, Giant Otters, Hyacinth Macaws, and a mind-boggling number of waterbirds, this is your shot. The Pantanal is the world’s top spot for wildlife photography and South American birding. Get inspired by the Pantanal tour.
 

Papua New Guinea – August 2026
This is the big one! Our Papua New Guinea trip focuses on all endemic bird families and a spectacular array of Birds of Paradise. Plus, we’ll time our visit to coincide with the colorful Mt Hagen Cultural Festival—a true feast for the senses, both avian and human. If you are interested, let me know asap, because the lodges and hotels fill up for Mt Hagen Cultural Festival very quickly. I shall be uploading the exact program shortly. 
 

Madagascar – November 2026
A whirlwind week for all the unique bird families, plus lemurs and chameleons. We’ll try for Helmet Vanga and Long-tailed Ground-Roller, and enjoy some of the world’s wildest biodiversity. See the Madagascar essentials.
 

Kilimanjaro & Tanzania – October-November 2026
A classic African adventure, with birding on the slopes of Kilimanjaro and make an attempt to summit the highest mountain in Africa. The post-tour is a week birding and big game in the Serengeti and Ngorongoro. Perfect for birders seeking both iconic wildlife and breathtaking landscapes. 

New! Flexible 12-Day Bird Photography Tour in Peru

Interested in Bird Photography in Peru? We’re excited to announce a brand new 12-day bird photography tour now available on the Kolibri Expeditions website!  We already ran the first trip last September. Now we are preparing departures for next year. 
The best part? You can choose any date that works for you. We’ll upload your selected date as a fixed departure, so others can join, making it more affordable for everyone. Prefer a private experience? Groups of 2–4 people can book a private tour at a very reasonable price. This is a fantastic opportunity for bird photographers to capture Peru’s incredible avian diversity at their own pace. See details and book your date here.

What’s New on the Website?

I’ve just updated the tour calendar with the latest 7WB departures. Also check the Kolibri Expeditions website for upcoming birding trips in Peru. It is a bit empty right now, as we have many private trips running in 2026, and I simply have not had time to plan the fixed departures. But let me know what areas you are interested in and I will upload your dates so others can join.  

This and that! Gunnar's updates. 

As per usual, I include some personal stuff that sometimes has nothing to do with birding. I have found that news on what I have been up to are appreciated. It concerns my running, my band, my travels, interesting stuff that I have come across on the web, and my recent travels and plans for the future, etc. 

Bird families of the world

My good Colombian friend Diego Calderón recently threw out a question on Facebook. 𝐇𝐎𝐖 𝐌𝐀𝐍𝐘 (𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡!) 𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐲𝐩𝐢𝐜 𝐟𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐧? There are 37 monotypic families out there. I have seen 20, with the last addition Puerto Rican Tanager, but missed Bornean Bristlehead again in Sabah recently (see below). How many have you seen?

Listing bird families is an alternative life list that is totally reachable within a lifetime, contrary to trying to see 10,000 species of birds. It is also a fun focus to have if you travel with a non-birding spouse, as it will leave you more relaxed if you miss an endemic or two. Many occur on islands, such as the Cagu of New Caledonia, the Puerto Rican Tanager on Puerto Rico, Olive Warbler on Cuba, or Bornean Bristlehead on Borneo. 

There are many iconic birds within this group of monotypic families, such as Hoatzin, Shoebill, Crab Lover, Jayshrike, Ibisbill, Wallcreeper and Rail Babbler. 

In the coming years, we will be adding more tours on 7 Wonders Birding to see unique bird families. Let me know if there are any particular ones that you are keen on seeing. We can set up short tours targeting specific bird families. 

Birds of the Caribbean. 

Last couple of years, I've done several trips to the Caribbean, to different islands. I visited recently Puerto Rico and we also went to Jamaica with the family last year. I managed to get in quite a bit of birding there. Additionally, I've done another family trip to Dominican Republic and I have experience in the past of Cuba. 
I want to set up three trips in the Caribbean:

1. A week combo of Dominican Republic, and Puerto Rico
2. A week for Cuba with the possible extensions
3. A tour for a week to Jamaica with the purpose of cleaning up all the endemics. 

They will be rolling out in the next couple of years. I'm also planning a Patagonia one-week trip in Chile and Argentina to clean up on bird families there, as well as seeing pumas in the wild in Torres del Paine National Park. This is an area that I know very well.

Let me know if you are interested in any of these. 

India and Malaysia. 

I just came back from Asia. I went to India for the Global Wildlife Fair, very successful with lots of Indian tour companies that want to come to Peru. After this, I was invited together with other operators for a week in Gujarat to see the amazing wildlife. We saw Asian lions, leopard, black buck, wild ass, and even a glimpse of a leopard and loads of birds. 
Here is a link to the photo dense Gujarat trip report that the organizers put together. 

These lions were a highlight of the trip. 

The sound is not the best. If you want to hear the song how it should sound check out Guran Guran - Gula Lilla Vatten on any music streaming service.
Too old for Rock'n'Roll. Never!

Hack: AI writing tool. Wispr Flow. 

I found an amazing tool for writing emails, short messages, answer chats, etc. It is a voice-to-text tool. Although you can do voice-to-text with regular functions on your computer, this specific tool also makes grammatical corrections and tidies up the sentences, putting in the punctuations and exclamation marks, etc. I can dictate in English, Swedish, or Spanish without having to change any settings. 
2,000 words/week are free. 
 

It saves me a lot of time, and at least for now, the $12 monthly fee is totally worth it. You can get a free month of the unlimited Pro version to try out by clicking this link. 

https://wisprflow.ai/r?GUNNAR23
It works with Mac and PC, and also on iPhones. Considering getting a second-hand iPhone just because of this. It will make it much easier to answer emails on the phone. It would be very useful when I travel so much. 
Let me know what you think about it? I'm especially interested to learn if you like the app on the iPhone. 

This birding documentary should get an Oscar. 

I would think that most serious birders have already heard of this fantastic road movie on YouTube about two young guys who set out to do a big year in the U.S. hardly without any previous experience of birding. It's hilarious, a must-see. 

Check out. Listers: A Glimpse Into Extreme Birdwatching.

Synopsis: It chronicles two brothers, Quentin and Owen Reiser, who attempt a "Big Year" of birding across the continental United States despite being novices. They live out of a used minivan for a full year, traveling huge distances, dealing with breakdowns and fatigue, and immersing themselves in the competitive culture of birdwatching. What starts as an experiment becomes a deeper journey of personal growth, camaraderie, humor, and perseverance, offering a raw and honest look at the unexpected demands of extreme birding.

I hope the people in the academy sees it! 

I'm Reading

I have taken up reading a bit more seriously the last couple of months, and a lot of great reading experiences. Here are some tips. 

The Long Ships by Frans Gunnar Bengtsson. The Vikings' Epos with incredible stories. I re-read it in Swedish - Röde Orm. It was probably 40 years since I read it the first time. This was a nice re-encounter. 

My Grandmother Sends Her Regards and Apologizes by Fredrik Backman. Remember A man named Ove? Well, this is by the same author. A brilliant story about the grandma to a 7-year-old girl who absolutely adores her grandma. Grandma tells her stories, fairy tales, and imaginary worlds. She is a superhero in the eyes of the 7-year-old girl. 

A Guide to the Good Life: The Ancient Art of Stoic Joy by William B. Irvine.
As I'm getting older, I'm getting more stoic. I'm calmer, I don't get angry or upset as often as I used to. I have stopped worrying about things that I can't control, and I'm becoming very content about little things that I would not pay much attention to when I was younger. So, I guess I have been practicing, in small ways, stoicism for quite some time. Regardless, this is a very hands-on handbook on how you can apply Stoic techniques in your own life. Why worry!

Japanese Novels. I have also for the last couple of years been trying to read more Japanese authors. Here are a couple of books that I enjoyed. 
Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World by Haruki Murakami. The eternal Nobel Prize runner up Haruki Murakami delivers. There are two parallel stories that eventually coincide - hence the double title. The End of the World part has a Kafka-like feeling and traces of Huxley's Brave New World. 

Coin Locker Babies by Ryu Murakami. Fascinating story in three parts about two boys who are abandoned in coin lockers in a railway station. They are adopted by the same family. One becomes sporty, whilst the other is arty and sensitive. 
 

Saludos

Gunnar