Exploring the Birds of Chile, Speaker: Dixie Summers.

       Dixie Sommers joined a WINGS Birding Tours trip to Chile in November 2023. The tour ranged from the far south and sea level Tierra del Fuego to the far north and high altitude Atacama Desert. The group counted 258 species ranging from penguins to flamingos to tapaculos and Furnarids
(ovenbirds).
       Chile’s diverse habitats and species result from its extreme geography. This long and skinny country ranges from the tropical 18th to the cold 56th parallel, nearly 2,700 miles. But it averages only 110 miles in width. This strange land shape encompasses the gateway to Antarctica, temperate rain forests, the world’s driest desert, and the Andes mountains reaching as high as 22,000 feet. The entire coast faces the Humboldt current, bringing
cold water up from the Antarctic and with it a rich variety of seabirds and other marine wildlife. Darwin visited many spots in Chile and left some entertaining comments on birds. 

     Dixie will tell the stories to go with some of her best photos and videos. The complete photo library is in the Chile file at www.ddpix.smugmug.com. Dixie last presented to NVBC in September of 2023 about her 2022 visit to New Zealand. She has birded all over the world including all 7 continents and in half of the US states. Her current volunteer activities include serving as Treasurer of the Virginia Society of Ornithology, editor of the VSO Newsletter, and Friends of Dyke Marsh board member. She leads bird walks for NVBC, NVBA, and Friends of Dyke Marsh. Dixie’s efforts have been and continue to be very important in our efforts to help get the 2nd Virginia Breeding Bird Atlas fully funded and published.