Raptor Rambles by Raptor Aid CIO

James Aldred - Raptor Aid Lockdown Live

I have had the privilege of working with wildlife cameraman and tree rope access expert James Aldred and as he's one of the most humble unassuming people you'll meet I knew I had to get him on the talk about his incredible work and career.

An Emmy award winning wildlife cameraman James has filmed all over the world but is most comfortable amongst the canopy filming the worlds arboreal and avian species. This work has included working on legendary productions such as Planet Earth and Our Planet.

I first came across James watching his epic BBC Wildlife on One episode where he climbs to a Harpy eagle nest to place a nest camera and feeling the sharp end of a protective mother. He also runs a tree rope access training company and has authored his first book The Man Who Climbs Trees.

https://www.jamesaldred.com/

Iolo Williams - Raptor Aid Lockdown Live

The first in our Lockdown Lives was BBC natural history presenter Iolo Williams. Iolo is a good friend of Raptor Aids and is a massive fan of birds of prey, his favourite being the Hen harrier which he still finds time to monitor.

Before ending up on our TV screens Iolo worked for the RSPB across Wales as the species protection officer for 15 years. This means Iolo is perfectly positioned to discuss conservation on the sharp end and he's certainly not one to mince his words.

Best known for his presenting on popular programs such as the BBC Springwatch and Autumnwatch series he is always great value with plenty of humour.

http://iolowilliams.co.uk/

Ian Thomson - Raptor Aid Lockdown Live

Ian Thomson is the head of RSPB Scotlands Investigations team investigating wildlife crime against birds. This is no easy task given the on going battles with some land uses in Scotland and the persecution of several raptor species.

An hour probably isn't long enough to discuss this issue but it was great to get an insight from someone who is on the very front line of raptor persecution.

https://www.rspb.org.uk/about-the-rspb/at-home-and-abroad/scotland/

Helen Macdonald - Raptor Aid Lockdown Live

Its not very often you get to chat to one of the UK's leading authors but having had the great fortune to work with Helen Macdonald and call her a friend. Her book H is for Hawk propelled Helen into the dizzy heights of stardom winning the Samuel Johnson Prize and Costa Book of the Year award among others.

Helen is a avid falconer and an incredible writer, her use of the English language and way describing things is wonderful. In this chat we try to get to know Helen and what makes her tick, where her love for raptors comes from and whats next.

 

Everton Miranda - Raptor Aid Lockdown Live

Everton Miranda is a raptor biologist with a fascination for predators and blood. The blood aspect might seem slightly odd because it stems from his background as a mixed martial art fighter. Since quitting this he has found his fix of violence by studying some of Brazil's mega predators.

Firstly he started on Anaconda before moving on to one of the largest eagles in the world the Harpy eagle. In this chat we hear all about Everton's collaboration with locals to unlock the world of Harpy eagles and shine a light onto this mega predators habits. 

Ed Drewitt - Raptor Aid Lockdown Live

Ed Drewitt is a naturalist and tour guide with a wealth of knowledge when it comes to the natural world. He is probably best known in the raptor world for his long standing study of Urban Peregrines which he has studied for over 20 years.

An avid bird ringer and wildlife tour guide Ed is a brilliant communicator and it was great to have him on sharing his years of knowledge studying the fastest bird on the planet and their urban adaptation. Ed has authored a book on Urban Peregrines and more recently on his other passion of studying prey remains from raptor kills.

https://www.eddrewitt.co.uk/

Dr. Ruth Tingay - Raptor Aid Lockdown Live

Ruth Tingay is a raptor biologist by training having worked in several countries on a range of species before returning to the UK to fight the battle for birds of prey and their continued persecution. 

Formerly the president of the Raptor Research Foundation Ruth has a strong grip on how the science works and this shows in her fantastic blog uncovering the world of raptor persecution here in the UK.

Ruth rarely gives interviews so this was a real treat to chat to her not just about persecution but also her path as a conservationist.

https://raptorpersecutionscotland.wordpress.com/

Dr. Mark Avery - Raptor Aid Lockdown Live

Mark is the former conservation director for the RSPB the UK's largest nature conservation charity. Since leaving the organisation he has become a prolific blogger and author covering a wide range of topics relating to the environment and natural world.

One aspect of Marks recent work has been his writing, commentary and petitions against certain land uses in Britain most notably grouse shooting and the many environmental impacts this sport has such as raptor persecution.

In this chat I try and find out what makes Mark tick, what he enjoys and what he wants to achieve as one of the UK's leading environmental campaigners.

https://markavery.info/

Dr. Gareth Tate - Raptor Aid Lockdown Live

In this episode we head to South Africa to find out about the fantastic work of the Endangered Wildlife Trust's bird of prey programme with the man in charge Dr Gareth Tate.

I heard Gareth talk about his work as part of the BoP Programme monitoring Martial eagles in the Karoo and loved how straight forward and pragmatic their approach was to the conservation of birds of prey.

In this episode we chatted to Gareth about his career, what its like to head up the programme and how things are faring for South Africa's birds of prey.

https://www.ewt.org.za/what-we-do/what-we-do-species/birds-of-prey-programme/

Dr. Eugene Potapov - Raptor Aid Lockdown Live

What is it like to work in some of the remotest parts of the world as a raptor biologist, well Dr. Eugene Potapov has been there and done that and written the book!

An expert on studying arctic species Eugene has spent decades studying species and habitats in the far North and East. These species include the Gyr falcon and Snowy owl both of which he has co authored as part of the legendary Poyser monograph range. He has also published Russia - A natural history.

Another species Eugene is very familiar with is the magnificent Steller's sea eagle, one of the largest eagle species in the world. In this chat we find out all about what it takes to carry out some of the toughest fieldwork in the most hostile environments.