Bird-Watching

Some 200 varieties of birds have been documented on Tobago: look for the yellow oriole, scarlet ibis, and the comical motmot—the male of the species clears sticks and stones from an area and then does a dance complete with snapping sounds to attract a mate. The flora is as vivid as the birds. Purple-and-yellow poui trees and spectacular orange immortelles splash color over the countryside, and something is blooming virtually every season.

NG & Company Nature Tours. Newton George spent 23 years with the Forestry Division and knows the island intimately. He offers a variety of tours and will even provide bird-watching tours of Trinidad. He also has a delightful hummingbird gallery at his home. 3 Top Hill St., Speyside, Tobago. 868/660–5463; www.newtongeorge.com.

Pioneer Journeys. Pat Turpin and Renson Jack at Pioneer Journeys can give you information about their bird-watching tours of Bloody Bay rain forest and Louis d'Or River valley wetlands. Tobago. 868/660–4327.