Ari Latja
Ari Latja was born in Tampere in 1954, where he also started watching birds. In those days he enjoyed migration watching above all, and for several years made two-week trips to the southern headland of Porkkala to see the ‘arktika’ - the mass migration of Arctic waders and waterfowl through the Baltic. In 1978 he moved to Joensuu to study geography and biology, and has stayed in Northern Karelia since then. For the last ifteen years his birdwatching time has concentrated on ringing, mostly at the bird observatory at Höytiäinen canal. Ari was chairman of the Northern Karelia Birdwatching Society for a number of years, and he’s till a member of the board.
Ari’s wife is a librarian and they have four children, the eldest of which is already heading out into the world. In addition to tour leading, Ari is a consultant in other areas requiring ornithological expertise. These include bird inventories for local environmental officials, and lecturing in zoology at the University of Joensuu.