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New York - December 5, 2013: Peru's third official Birding Rally Challenge is off to a flying start, with a total of 303 species spotted in just one day [pictured above are actual sightings- a Hoatzin (left) and Social Flycatcher (right)]. Organized by Inkaterra hotels, Inkaterra Association (ITA) and Promperu, the rally began yesterday and will continue through December 10, 2013.
For six days, renowned birdwatchers from the United States, South Africa, the United Kingdom and Colombia (five teams in total) are competing to find the largest number of bird species.The groups will travel a total of 522 miles through some of Peru's most bio-diverse areas, from the Amazon's Tambopata National Reserve in southern Peru to the cloud forests of Machu Picchu.
The Birding Rally Challenge's objective is to develop ecotourism and birding in Peru, promote nature conservation and aid in the economic growth of local communities through sustainable tourism. Peru is listed as having the world's third largest bird species population and one fifth of the world's total species, making it the ideal location to host this competition.
The first official Birding Rally Challenge was held in December 2012 and explored regions from Tambopata to Machu Picchu, with a total of 692 species spotted. The second rally took place in June 2013 and traveled from the coastal region of Lambayeque to the Amazonian region of San Martín, with a total of 864 species spotted.
For further information and details on the teams and daily results, please visithttp://www.birdingrallychallenge.com/.
To learn more about Inkaterra, visit: www.inkaterra.com.
ABOUT INKATERRA:
Inkaterra is a Peruvian organization that celebrates 37 years of experience in sustainable tourism initiatives. It focuses on preserving and rescuing Peru's geography, nature, customs and cultures and sharing them with the world. Since 2011 Inkaterra holds the Rainforest Alliance Verification in Sustainable Tourism,the Relais & Châteaux 2013 Environment Trophy, the 2012 Tourism for Tomorrow Award for Conservation, the 2012 Green Choice Sustainable Tourism Award, the Latin American Travel Association's (LATA) 2012 Award for Sustainability and was second place honoree at the Educational Travel Community's (ETC) 2013 Responsible Tourism Showcase. In late 2013, Inkaterra will open Inkaterra Hacienda Urubamba, an 11-room contemporary hacienda-style hotel located in Peru's Sacred Valley of the Incas. The company currently operates Inkaterra Machu Picchu Pueblo Hotel, Inkaterra Reserva Amazonica & Inkaterra Hacienda Concepcion in the Amazon of Southern Peru, Inkaterra La Casona and one recently launched boutique hotels El MaPi in Machu Picchu Pueblo, under the more affordable brand 'byInkaterra.' Inkaterra has an alliance with the NGO Inkaterra Association (ITA) through which the company's profits are invested in research, conservation, educational and social development programs. |
