This season, several of our faithful partner organizations and individual travelers had the pleasure of visiting ‘CASA BERNABE’, and the small but incredibly attractive backyard cultivated by a simple yet extraordinary couple who have lived their lives in a rural community in the confines of Zapata National Park, arguably among the most important bird habitats in the West Indies. This couple took the initiative beginning in 2006 to cultivate plants that provided a natural food source to several species of birds, including the world’s smallest, the Bee Hummingbird ( Mellisuga helenae ). In a recent visit, his 4th to Cuba in 10 years, Ronan Markowski had the immense pleasure of hand feeding an intrepid (and apparently hungry) zunzuncito! Cuban Emeralds, Cuban Orioles, and several North American warbler species are regular guests at Casa Bernabe.
We continue to support Bernabe by visiting and contributing hummingbird feeders, and donating to the sugar fund, which keeps up to 4 feeders per day ready to fuel these incredible birds.