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Rich Hoyer

Rich Hoyer began keying out wildflowers, raising butterflies and moths in his bedroom, netting tadpoles and dragonfly larvae, and catching snakes, lizards, moles, and voles with his younger brother and father before he finally discovered birding at the age of 14. After graduating with bachelors degrees in Zoology and German he began his dream guiding career in 1996 as a local guide on Saint Paul Island in Alaska’s Pribilofs. He has been a full-time leader for WINGS since September 1997.

His musical ear is always tuned into bird voices, and he has nearly instant recall of thousands of bird songs and call notes in his head, but his interests in other areas of natural history have only grown, and he continues to enjoy learning about various forms wildlife such as damselflies, keying out composites, and photographing beeflies, among many others. His other passions and hobbies include playing piano, singing, learning languages, cooking, baking bread, gardening, and knitting. He currently lives in his homestate of Oregon.

The diversity of Rich’s natural history interests is well represented in his blog, Birdernaturalist.

Upcoming Tours with Rich

Testimonials for Rich

Rich is an excellent leader. His ability to call birds in, vary his "owl" dialects, and get participants seeing the birds is stellar. He has attention to detail for every aspect of the tour start to finish!

- Kathy C. on Mexico: Oaxaca at Christmastime

Rich Hoyer brings a wonder to life that is absorbed by everyone around him. My daughter and I had a once-in-a-lifetime experience with Rich, Jairo and the boat crew!

- Kay H. on The Galápagos Islands

Rich knows Oregon and its birds and had a great plan to maximize our birding experience.

- John D. on Oregon in Late Summer

Rich was excellent in the Galapagos. He knew all of the birds very well and was able to get everyone on them. Rich was also great at pointing out butterflies, plants, and other wildlife. He also worked hard to identify the fish we saw snorkeling, which was not always easy. Jairo was also a great local guide, who worked well with Rich to make this a tour that I will never forget.

- Michael P. on The Galápagos Islands

I can't say enough good about Rich. His knowledge and enthusiasm know no bounds (not to mention his endless energy). Great guide and acquaintance!

- Diane T. on Jamaica
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