Lailson Marques

Born in 1996 in Maranhão State, north east Brazil, Lailson Marques is an extremely accomplished young naturalist. As a boy, he found he was exceptionally good at climbing trees, regularly climbing palm trees to heights of more than 100 feet, a skill which nowadays serves him very well during treetop research on Harpy Eagle nests and monkey ecology in the Brazilian Amazon rainforest!

Upon completion of school, Lailson obtained a teaching degree with the intent of teaching primary and junior school children. However, after moving to the Pantanal to be closer to his extended family and the area’s spectacular wildlife, his passion and knowledge for birds and mammals of the area led him to become a wildlife tour leader. In addition to time in the Pantanal, he also spends time in the Brazilian Amazon studying Harpy Eagles and the vast diversity of other species to be found.

Since the latter part of 2018, Lailson has guided many guests in the Pantanal and also in the Southern Amazon, including guiding a BBC film crew, with presenter Liz Bonnin, as they filmed Harpy Eagles from the top of a 110-foot-tall tower that Lailson himself had built.

Lailson is blessed with, what he likes to call a ‘sunny disposition and a notably “can-do” attitude’ which he hopes makes him a pleasure to travel with and good fun too!