Phil Chaon

Guide

A student of nature who enjoys birds as much as birders, Phil Chaon has a remarkable breadth of experience across the globe, and an unmatched sense of humor as well. After studying botany and wildlife biology in the redwoods of Northern California, Phil moved on to spend several years working field work jobs all over the planet. From banding birds in Peru, to monitoring Fairy-wrens in Papua New Guinea, and surveying bird communities on coffee farms in Kenya, he has developed a familiarity with a tremendous variety of avifuana. Eventually he moved from fieldwork to guiding, and has since spent the last 8 years leading birding, wildlife, and photography tours on 5 continents. In addition to guiding, Phil works as an audio analyst, training AI systems to categorize bird songs and he's co-authored two books so far, including Habitats of the World and a title due out in 2025, Habitats of North America. When not on tour, Phil lives in Albuquerque and occupies himself with long night drives, trivia, farming, and divining the secrets of perfect barbecue. To see what Phil's been up to most recently, take a look at his Instagram here. And enjoy a presentation he gave on Habitats of the World here.

Listen to Phil on Life List: A Birding Podcast & also on the Field Stories Podcast.

What you're saying about Hillstar Nature....

"Getting to bird anywhere with George Armistead and Phil Chaon is basically tantamount to getting to play pickup with Barkley and Erving (though I'll leave the debate of who's who to you guys to sort out)... Thanks to Hillstar for a truly special trip to Uganda!"
- Josh P. from Pennsylvania, Uganda 2023

Upcoming tours with Phil

Colombia: Amazonia & White Sand Specials - January to February 2025

Brazil: Birds & Wildlife of the Pantanal - September 2025

Uganda: Silverbacks, Shoebill & Murchison Falls - January 2026