Wezil Walraven, a seasoned bird guide for over 3 decades, grew up in Atlanta, Ga. After moving to the Ozarks in the mid 70’s he met his first birding mentor, a wildlife artist/naturalist who took him out on breeding bird surveys where he learned the songs of regional birds. Upon moving back to Atlanta, in the late 80’s he worked as a naturalist/bird guide for a local nature center. There he led tours off the coast of Georgia on the barrier islands, as well as canoe trips and American Woodcock Courtship displays for patrons of the nature center. Wezil met his artist wife Lisa there, both employees of the same nature center. They moved to southeast Arizona in 1998 where he gained employment with two international bird tour companies over a 10 year period, before starting his own bird tour company. Wezil has lead and co lead trips to destinations including Mexico, Arizona, South Texas, Colorado and Key West/Dry Tortugas. Wezil served on the board of directors of the Southwest Wings Birding Festival for 4 years before becoming president in 2006. During his time in Arizona, he was featured in publications such as Arizona Highways, Terra Savage ,a european magazine, and the book “A Supremely Bad Idea.” After a five year stint in Asheville, North Carolina, leading trips on the Blue Ridge Parkway, Wezil and his wife are now living in Tijeras, New Mexico. Wezil joined the BRANT team in 2013.
