A naturalist since the age of eight, I spent early years exploring the Northumbrian coast, watching birds and dreaming of the tropics. University brought the chance to make those dreams reality. I trained as a biologist, and joined conservation expeditions to the Ecuadorian Andes, Paraguay, Indonesia and the South Pacific. After working as a research biologist with global NGOs (BirdLife International and IUCN) I joined the Edward Grey Institute of Oxford University, where I now hold a post-doctoral position. My long-term focus is ornithological research and conservation in Peru and Bolivia, two countries that keep luring me back with unanswered questions, uncharted wilderness and spectacular diversity.