2019 Festival Artist

Michael L.P. Retter

 

Michael L. P. Retter has been leading field trips at the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival for 18 years. He is the editor of the American Birding Association’s Birder’s Guide magazine, author of the ABA Field Guide to Birds of Illinois, and a part-time tour leader for BRANT Nature Tours. During college, Michael regularly went on road trips with friends into Mexico over holiday vacations, and he has been tour-leading there ever since. He is currently putting his knowledge of the area’s birds to paper by writing an upcoming Princeton identification guide to the birds of Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize. Michael serves as an eBird reviewer for Mexico, Illinois, and Indiana, where he formerly served as chair of the state records committee. Michael runs QBNA, North America’s informal club for LGBTQ+ birders and their allies. He currently lives and gardens in Fort Worth, Texas.

Festival Artwork 2019