IAN SINCLAIR

Ian Sinclair was born and educated in Northern Ireland and went on to study in museums in the U.K and the U.S.A. culminating in a Museum Diploma from the British Museums Association. He is presently a full time writer and lecturer.

Ian is one of Africa's foremost birders, having traveled widely on the continent over the past thirty years. He is a well-known tour leader, having led innumerable trips to most parts of Africa south of the Sahara. He has participated and led several exploratory expeditions into remote central and West Africa. Since the late 70's Ian has traveled extensively and regularly into Madagascar and has built up a considerable knowledge of its wildlife and added many new birds to the region's list. Over the past ten years he has managed to visit most of the islands in the western Indian Ocean searching for their endemic birds and took a year off to study migrating birds in the Himalayas and the Indian subcontinent. For six years he worked at the Fitzpatrick Institute of African Ornithology, University of Cape Town, undertaking research projects mostly in the Southern Oceans and Antarctica. During this period he visited many islands in the Antarctic and sub Antarctic and lived on Marion Island for nine months. His research there enveloped seabird distribution at sea, their diet and breeding biology of some penguins, albatrosses and petrels. He was a member of staff at the Durban Science Museum and a lecturer at the Natal University's Extra Mural Department during the 1980's.

Photos by Ian Sinclair

During his travels he has recorded bird songs and calls extensively and has deposited all his recordings in the Fitzpatrick Sound Library, British Library of Wildlife Sounds and the Cornell Laboratory. His sound recordings have been used in research and for sonogram production and for publication. Many of his recordings have been reproduced in commercial bird tapes and compact discs in Africa and Europe.

Ian is a prolific writer in both scientific and popular journals but his main interest in birds is reflected in the twenty four books he has written and co-authored. Unprecedented sales of his Field Guide to Southern African Birds have seen it through a third edition and 10th impression. His other popular books are Where to Watch Birds in Southern Africa, A guide to the Birds of the Kruger National Park, Birds of Prey, Highveld Birds and Common Birds. The Sasol Field Guide to Southern African Birds of which he is senior author has run to its 3rd edition. A larger format of the same title has been acclaimed the finest and most comprehensive field guide in Africa and has run to a 2nd edition. Southern African Birds, a Photographic Guide, proved very popular and sold out within a few months. A field guide to the Birds of the Indian Ocean Islands was published in May 1998 which features all the endemic and other birds found in this wide region of islands including the island continent, Madagascar. A Birding Map of Southern Africa published in January 2001 is the first in a series to be produced. His largest work to date, A Field Guide to Birds of Sub Saharan Africa is the most comprehensive and lavishly illustrated bird guide to any of the world’s continents.

We also are priviledge to have Bill Hilton, Jr. noted Hummingbird Bander.