Federico "Fred" Fiorillo, Author at AviBirds https://avibirds.com/author/federico-fiorillo/ Discover and Identify Birds Around You Tue, 19 Aug 2025 11:11:22 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.1.4 https://avibirds.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/cropped-avibirds-icon-32x32.png Federico "Fred" Fiorillo, Author at AviBirds https://avibirds.com/author/federico-fiorillo/ 32 32
Federico "Fred" Fiorillo

Federico "Fred" Fiorillo

Federico Fiorillo is an Italian nature guide and content writer based in the magnificent Val de Bagnes, Switzerland. He’s an avid hiker and snowboarder and he travels to the great wilderness areas of the world to see the wildlife and birds he’s passionate about.

In 2008 and 2011 he joined two Brazilian wildlife field trips in Bahia and decided that observing birds in their habitat was going to be one of his driving passions. He completed a birdwatching course with EBN Italia in 2013, and then in 2014 and 2015 he travelled to South East Asia, Australia and the United States where he joined a photographic workshop at the Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge in Utah.

From 2016 to 2018 he lives in New Zealand, where he collaborates in environmental projects at the Otorohanga Kiwi House, which since 1971 protects kiwi and other New Zealand native birds, among the projects he worked hands on the most rewarding was the one aiming to release Brown Kiwis into the wild.

In 2017, he completes a backcountry survival course obtaining the skillsets needed to thrive in-stead of just survive in the face of adversity in the wilderness. In 2017 he also joins a NZ Bird Photography Tour in Ulva Island and at the Royal Albatross Center of the Otago Peninsula, home to the world’s only mainland Royal Albatross breeding colony.

After his travels across the South Pacific, following his experiences in 2018 he moves in the Swiss Alps where he’s now a nature guide leading tours in the alpine region between Switzerland, Italy and France. Leading nature walks and overnight hiking trips, teaching tourists and locals the secrets of the plants and animals living in this alpine region.

Inspired by an alternative lifestyle he believes in the importance of being in connection with the natural environment and feels the responsibility of interpreting the natural wealth of a site, educating and informing other of the different aspects of that particular area.

57 guides on AviBirds

The Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) – The Wide-Billed Duck https://avibirds.com/mallard/ https://avibirds.com/mallard/#respond Thu, 07 Nov 2024 07:46:53 +0000 https://avibirds.com/?p=23896 Considered the progenitor of all domestic duck breeds, the mallard is widespread in our ponds and waterways, nowadays adapted to live both in the countryside and in the city – as long as they offer an adequate environment for its stay. Its appearance is nice and with time it has stopped being considered a wild […]

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The Yellowhammer Bird (Emberiza citrinella) https://avibirds.com/yellowhammer/ https://avibirds.com/yellowhammer/#respond Thu, 01 Aug 2024 18:39:22 +0000 https://avibirds.com/?p=23945 The Yellowhammer is the most widespread and most frequent species of bunting in Europe and lives preferably in agricultural landscapes where hedges, orchards, fields and meadows are present. Already at the beginning of spring the male plays his characteristic simple song. In the past, deforestation, traditional field farming and the use of horses for it, […]

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The Alpine Chough Bird (Pyrrhocorax graculus) https://avibirds.com/alpine-chough/ https://avibirds.com/alpine-chough/#respond Wed, 24 Jul 2024 19:57:38 +0000 https://avibirds.com/?p=23806 The Alpine chough is a familiar figure for mountain-goers: an acrobat of the air, it sails effortlessly around the highest peaks facing the most impetuous winds. Winter tourism allows these birds to resist even during the cold season at altitudes of over 3’000 m. In the vicinity of the mountain restaurants and picnic spots they […]

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The Greater Flamingo (Phoenicopterus roseus) https://avibirds.com/greater-flamingo/ https://avibirds.com/greater-flamingo/#respond Wed, 24 Jul 2024 15:59:45 +0000 https://avibirds.com/?p=23976 Summer, low humid plain. It’s here that, at any moment, the dense network of canals between the mouth of rivers and the wide expanse of the valleys can be coloured by hundreds of flamingos, in search of food, and sometimes in search of fresh water too, since increasingly vast stretches of coastal marshes often presents, […]

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The Little Egret – A Note Of Whiteness On The Water https://avibirds.com/little-egret/ https://avibirds.com/little-egret/#respond Thu, 11 Apr 2024 18:40:00 +0000 https://avibirds.com/?p=24313 White as snow, the little egret lands on the shallow water of the swamps showing off the long white flight feathers, which make this heron reach a meter long wingspan. The neck is long and sinuous, with a sharp and pointy beak, often used to pierce the preys, before swallowing them. A curious trick that […]

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The Golden Oriole – One Of The Most Beautiful Species Of The European Birdlife https://avibirds.com/golden-oriole/ https://avibirds.com/golden-oriole/#comments Thu, 01 Jun 2023 05:59:14 +0000 https://avibirds.com/?p=23564 The Golden Oriole it’s a bird with an exotic appearance, its closest relatives live in the African and Asian tropical areas. It has reserved habits and despite its showy yellow-black plumage, it’s not easy to discover this bird in the foliage of the trees bathed in light. His melodious flute singing, however reveals its presence. […]

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Amazing Black Bird with Yellow Beak – Common Blackbird https://avibirds.com/blackbird/ https://avibirds.com/blackbird/#respond Thu, 01 Jun 2023 05:42:49 +0000 https://avibirds.com/?p=23889 With its melodious flute song, which sometimes resounds already in January, the blackbird is one of the first heralds of spring. He likes to sing from exposed places, such as rooftops or treetops, so that his singing can be heard from far away. The final tune, gentle and subdued, is muttered with closed beak and […]

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The Striated Heron – A Stealthy Fish Hunter https://avibirds.com/striated-heron/ https://avibirds.com/striated-heron/#respond Wed, 10 Mar 2021 05:04:16 +0000 https://avibirds.com/?p=25003 Also called little heron or mangrove heron, the latter name gives away its preferred habitat as it is a common bird in the mangrove forests of coastal areas of Oceania, Central and South America as well as Asia and the South Pacific Ocean island countries. Belonging to the Ardeidae family tree it has an extremely […]

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The Southern White-Faced Owl – A Little Big Owl https://avibirds.com/southern-white-faced-owl/ https://avibirds.com/southern-white-faced-owl/#respond Mon, 08 Mar 2021 05:33:31 +0000 https://avibirds.com/?p=24993 The Southern white-faced owl is a “miniature owl” of the African savannah. This little owl has nocturnal habits and is not a great flyer, but prefers to jump on the ground in search of small prey. If disturbed, it swells the plumage and spreads its wings, so that it appears larger; but if the predator […]

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The Laughing Dove – The Bird Loyal To Its Mate For Life https://avibirds.com/laughing-dove/ https://avibirds.com/laughing-dove/#comments Fri, 05 Mar 2021 05:30:57 +0000 https://avibirds.com/?p=24959 The Laughing dove is a small bird that lives in the sub-Saharan regions of the African continent, in the Middle East and as far as India. This small dove and its long tale are often found in dry bushes and semi-desert environments, where the inseparable couples of laughing doves can be seen eating on the […]

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