 KNUT was born in 1973 in
Chemnitz, Germany and spent his childhood years there. His interest in nature began at ten
years of age when his father took him out to observe the local avifauna, including bats,
dragonflies, grasshoppers, and others. When he was a bit older, Knut joined the Saxon Ornithologist's Association and worked as a volunteer for a Barn Owl banding program as part of a long-term monitoring program of raptors and owls at the University of Halle. While a member of the Saxon Ornithologist's Association, Knut dedicated six years to the research and conservation of the Jackdaw. Knut later attended the University of Eberswalde, Germany, where he studied Engineering of Landscape Management and Nature Conservation. He wrote his thesis on the avifauna of a cloud forest site in Guatemala. Since finishing his university studies in 1997, Knut has lived in Guatemala and carried out various ornithological studies in different areas of the country. Knut's primary interests are investigations of bird communities and the implementation and performance of long-term bird monitoring programs. Over his years of field research, he has acquired an ample knowledge of bird songs and calls from those of the lowland rainforests up to the high mountain cloud forests of Guatemala. This knowledge of bird songs is one of Knut's most important tools in realizing his bird studies. Currently Knut is directing a bird-monitoring program for the Association PROEVAL-RAXMU and is preparing a research project on the ecology of the Highland Guan Penelopina nigra. Knut speaks fluent English, German, and Spanish.
During the two years of her thesis investigation, Claudia acquired a deep knowledge of Guatemalan avifauna and the culture of the Maya Q'eqchi' indigenous population of the country. Based on these experiences Claudia trained three Q'eqchi' indigenous men from the community of Rocjá Pomtilá to be scientific bird census takers. Claudia's training of the bird census takers was part of the foundation for a long-term bird monitoring program, which continues to be run by the Guatemalan Conservation Association PROEVAL-RAXMU. Claudia has been dedicated to studying birds since 1996 through numerous short-term studies and excursions in national protected areas around the country. Claudia speaks fluent English and Spanish. Knut & Claudia conduct EarthFoot's "Birding in Guatemala" program |
Claudia
was born in 1974 and grew up in Guatemala City, Guatemala. She studied
Chemistry and Biology at San Carlos University in Guatemala and wrote her thesis on the
avifauna of Laguna Lachuá National Park in Guatemala's northern, tropical rainforest.