David Tønnessen

Purple Gallinule © Robert Royse

Meet Your ABG Guide

David Tønnessen

Meet Your ABG Guide

David Tønnessen

Experience, Care, and Local Knowledge

About David Tønnessen

David began his birding journey in Colorado and has since been fortunate to travel to many corners of North America in pursuit of his passion. No matter where birding takes him, he always returns to the vast wild spaces and rich avifauna of his home state. With its extraordinary diversity of habitats and expansive public lands, David firmly believes Colorado is one of the best places in the country to bird—and he’s eager to show you why.

David is a guide for Colorado Birding Guides and regularly leads trips for birding festivals and events across the region. He serves on the Colorado Bird Records Committee, is an eBird reviewer in the state, and has been working with the Cornell Lab of Ornithology to improve Merlin Sound ID since 2021. He contributes regularly to birding and ornithology journals, and ran the “Field Marks” column for the Colorado Birds journal from 2021 until 2025 which explored subtle bird identification challenges.

Currently a graduate student, David’s academic interests include acoustic monitoring, avian vocal behavior, evolution, and phylogeny.

Reviews

“My wife and I have birded with David for almost 10 years in Colorado. He is an excellent birding guide and knowledgeable ornithologist. He has amazing visual and audio ID skills for both local and migratory species from Central America, Mexico, Southwestern United States and particularly Colorado. He is patient and helps each individual maximize their tour experience. Meeting the individual participant’s needs is a priority.” – Leonard & Joy L.

“Our, guide, David, was wonderful. His passion for birding was evident as we were always ready to call it a day before he was. My wife has birding, and naturalist, interests. He was constantly engaging her interest. I am a rank amateur, yet David was amazingly patient and funny. We couldn’t have been more pleased.”  – Mark P.

“I recently booked a guide for two days at Big Bend to see the Colima Warbler. I’ve used many guide services and I have to say that David is easily among the top guides I’ve ever had. He was timely, professional, knowledgeable, and personable. I had a amazing time and checked off most of the birds I wanted to see (in excess of 100 species). I highly recommend Texas Birding Guides and intend to use them again.” – Jeffrey S.

“Whether by sight or by sound, David is a fantastic spotter. He is also an amazing guide and extremely knowledgable about birds and habitats. He is a fun leader and intent to get everyone on the bird. Anyone that has birded with him in the past knows how incredibly patient he is and that he makes sure that everyone is included in all aspects of birding adventures.” – Kathy K.

“David is an extremely knowledgeable guide and a patient teacher. I went on a trip to the Texas coast with him, and his choice of locations was excellent. His ability to identify birds by sight and sound amazed me. He is enthusiastic and passionate about birding. He helps each person on the tour get on the bird, and is able to find the target birds. I highly recommend him for any birding trip.” – Jo Anne P.

 

 

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