Exploring the Natural Wonders of Planet Earth

Mark Pretti Nature Tours offers high quality trips with exceptional birding and natural history education in southeast Arizona and Latin America.  My interests go well beyond birds and include everything in the natural world.  My outings include stories not just about birds, but also about plants, insects, mammals, reptiles and amphibians, basic geology, and general ecology.  As we all know, ecological relationships are abundant and fascinating, and my approach to guiding is to not only find and identify species, but to also tell you about their unique natural history and the connections they have with their neighbors.  I find that this not only helps clients remember the species we see, but it also puts nature into a meaningful context and gives people a true understanding of what makes a particular habitat, whether it's the Sierra Madre or lowland Amazonian rainforest, tick.

For many years, I have had a strong interest in conservation and have worked to incorporate that interest into my day-to-day life.  With that in mind, I've structured my business to minimize resource consumption and business expenses by working from our small home, not producing glossy catalogs or mailings, advertising solely through word of mouth, and enjoying a simple lifestyle.  With such an approach, I can offer the same itineraries (in many cases, the exact same lodges, trails, wildlife, food, etc.) as the larger tour companies but for 15-40% less. 

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Mark Pretti is a perpetual student of nature as well as a humble teacher focusing on birds, general natural history, and conservation. In addition to birds of southeast Arizona and the neotropics, my other interests and areas of expertise include the identification and ecology of plants, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and insects, with a particular interest in ecological relationships and conservation. 

I worked as the naturalist at The Nature Conservancy's Ramsey Canyon Preserve from 1997 to 2004, and in my free time, have moonlighted as field trip coordinator and trip leader for the Southwest Wings Birding and Nature Festival, board member and trip leader for the Huachuca Audubon Society, and office manager, trip leader, and head dishwasher for Mark Pretti Nature Tours.  I've had the good fortune both with the Conservancy and as a freelance environmental educator to have provided nature-based education programs for hundreds of students in southern Arizona and have led summer nature camps for children since 1998.  I've also enjoyed improving my Spanish by doing similar programs with students in Sonora, Mexico.

Along with my wife, Karen, I worked as a birding and natural history guide at the Cristalino Jungle Lodge in the southern Amazon as well as in other locations in Mato Grosso, Brazil for three months in 2004 and again for four months in 2006.  In addition to our Brazilian travels, I've had the good fortune in recent years to have made about 50 trips to Mexico, several dozen trips to Belize, and trips to Costa Rica, Peru, Ecuador, and Uganda where I've greatly enjoyed seeing, enjoying, and learning about the birds and natural history of these wonderful places.  I have a B.S. in Zoology and have led birding and natural history trips in Arizona and south of the border since 1997.

When not in the field with my binoculars, I'm usually getting my endorphin fix by swimming, running, enjoying our tandem bicycle, or mountain biking.................after which I usually satisfy my ravenous appetite with Karen's fabulous cooking.

My focus on unique experiences, small group size, and love of learning and teaching has created memorable natural adventures in some of Earth's most beautiful and wildlife-rich landscapes.

Last updated: August 10, 2010.