Birding Trinidad and Tobago with local guides who know the wild places.

Lester Nanan Bio

A naturalist, conservationist and guide shaped by generations of wetland protection.

Lester Nanan comes from a family of environmentalists where the movement started as early as 1920, when his grandfather petitioned the government to save the wetlands and scarlet ibis in Trinidad, which was successful as it became law in 1948. The Caroni Swamp was later renamed after his father Winston Nanan, who struggled all his years to put the Caroni Swamp on the world map and transform it into a very sustainable and world famous tourist attraction.

Lester Nanan started birding as early as 17 years old when he would assist his father in documenting species in the Caroni Swamp and then later, the wider Trinidad and Tobago. At the age of 22, he left the field of electrical engineering and joined the family's business, where he excelled and has since led several bird watching expeditions around Trinidad and Tobago.

He is considered to be an explorer, adventurer, naturalist and conservationist. He has also acquired a vast amount of knowledge on the country's natural history, which he wishes to educate people on conservation and preservation to benefit all and involve local communities in the process of obtaining a more sustainable lifestyle.

His mission is to ensure that the swamp becomes an environmentally sensitive area so that every species that enters the swamp is protected. He played an integral part when the scarlet ibis became an environmentally sensitive species, and works together with conservation organisations, protected area managers, government agencies, the tourism board, tour operators and guides throughout the country to develop sustainable tourism opportunities around bird watching, photography and natural tourism.