Jake Thompson

“I recently booked an owling trip with Arizona Birding Guides as it was my first time birding in Southeast AZ. Jake was a fantastic guide that went above and beyond for my owling trip, and he helped me find two lifers! He knew so much about the local habitat, sharing information about the plant and animal life as we went along. I plan to book with AZ Birding Guides again in the future, and would highly recommend Jake as a guide.” – Caroline C

“We enjoyed birding with Jake. We were pleased by his broad knowledge of wildlife and the ecosystem in addition to his birding skills. When we met him for our first trip, he had a Botteri’s Sparrow lined up in his scope for us to see. That night we clearly heard a rare Buff-collared Nightjar several times. We also heard Elf Owls, Common Poorwills and saw a lot of Lesser Nighthawks. On the way back he stopped to show us a Sonoran Desert Toad and a Gila Monster! On our second night, we heard a Northern Pygmy Owl and got a great look at a Whiskered Screech Owl. At the end of the trip, Jake used an app and a gizmo attached to his phone to record high pitched frequencies and ID bats! That was really amazing. We enjoyed seeing the nectar bats using the hummingbird feeders. All in all a truly great experience.” – Vicki N

“I had a fantastic half-day of birding with Jake Thompson, one of the guides of Arizona Birding Tours. Jake is one of the best bird guides I have ever had! He has a great ability to spot birds and a phenomenal ear to hear and recognize birds by their calls and songs. We met at 7 am near the entrance to Madera Canyon and birded the lower portion of Florida Canyon and then went to Santa Rita Lodge to see some of the birds which come to the feeders there. We saw lots of birds including some which were new birds for me. Jake was not only knowledgeable about the birds, he knew the trees and plants and the relationship of the bird locations to the microclimates we were in. Amazing! On top of all that he is a very warm, personable guy and an absolute pleasure to spend time with. I recommend him highly!” – Nelson M

“We booked two full days of guided birding and an evening owling for our trip to SE AZ while staying at Casa de San Pedro. Jake Thompson was our fabulous guide. He was very familiar with all the area birding hotspots, could identify all the birds by call, even faint and short segments, and shared complete ebird checklists.” – Karl B