top of page

Meet the Wildstarts team

David profile pic

DAVID CAMPBELL

David's main expertise is in birds, having worked for BirdGuides and Rare Bird Alert, and as Assistant Warden at Dungeness Bird Observatory.

He regularly writes for Birdwatch Magazine and is a Wildlife Trusts ornithologist.

David has served the Sussex Ornithological Society as its Recorder, Swift Champion and a member of its rarities committee.

 

David holds a bird ringing (banding) license. His other favourite wildlife groups are butterflies, dragonflies, moths and mammals.

Ingrid profile pic

INGRID ALLAN

Wildlife and art are two of Ingrid's biggest passions.

 

She moved south from Edinburgh and graduated with a degree in illustration from Brighton University in 2015.

 

Since then, she has worked as a Teaching Assistant and run after-school wildlife clubs with Earth Calling.

 

A passionate all-round naturalist, Ingrid is particularly fond of fish, insects, wildflowers and mammals (especially lagomorphs!).

Nick Bond.jpg

NICK BOND

Nick is an experienced birder and knowledgeable about a range of other wildlife found across the South Downs and Sussex, after moving down from Surrey over a decade ago.

 

Handy with a camera, he put his photographic eye to good use as Photographic Editor of the Sussex Bird Report for several years.

 

Nick keeps the Worthing Birding blog up to date with local sightings.

Susy Dixon-Jones

SUSY DIXON-JONES

Susy is a seasoned all-round naturalist based in Surrey, with a professional background in conservation land management and ecological monitoring.

 

She has managed various nature reserves across southeast England.

 

Her passion is connecting people from all backgrounds with nature.

 

An experienced fieldworker, she specialises in ornithological surveying, as well as reptiles. Her other key areas of interest are butterflies and moths, dragonflies, mammals and plants, but she enjoys recording all species.

Matt Phelps

MATT PHELPS

Matt lives in Pulborough, in the heart of the South Downs National Park.

 

He is an eBird data reviewer for Sussex and sits on the Sussex Ornithological Society rarities committee.

With a wide-ranging natural history knowledge alongside extensive birding experience, Matt leads a variety of Wildstarts tours.

 

Often found at Knepp, he also leads safaris at the famous rewilding site.

 

Always one for working outdoors, Matt has been a National Trust warden and ecology groundsman.

Marc Read

Marc runs our bird photography workshops and is an accomplished bird photographer, with his work regularly featuring in the pages of Birdwatch magazine.

He is based in Eastbourne and, as an active Sussex birder, Marc spends much of his time birding at sites like Beachy Head.

As well as Sussex, the Isles of Scilly is a favourite destination of Marc's, and he is found there every autumn.

MARC READ

David Callahan_edited.jpg

DAVID CALLAHAN

East London-based David is a life-long birder who is now a freelance writer about birds, conservation and natural history, after 10 years as Staff Writer on Birdwatch magazine. 

 

He has also written three books including the definitive and most up-to- date works on the region he mostly leads tours in: Where to Watch Birds in East Anglia and Where to Watch Birds in South-East England: Essex, London and Kent.


He has birded and led clients over much of the UK, as well as in the USA, Hawaii, most of Europe, Turkey, The Gambia, Egypt, Madagascar, Hong Kong, Singapore, Indonesia, Australia and New Zealand. 

 

He also enjoys bird and wildlife photography and has had many of his shots published.


David’s academic background has taken in a degree in Biological Science at Birkbeck (London University) and a Masters in Taxonomy and Biodiversity jointly earned at London Imperial College, the Zoological Society of London and the London Natural History Museum.


Despite all this experience, he also finds time to run a parallel career as a performing and recording musician.

Bentham

BENTHAM

Bentham is an honorary member of the Wildstarts team, often accompanying us to scout out new sites for our tours.

 

Her interests include digging, catching snowballs and running circles in the long grass.

She is friendly, sociable and loves children. Bentham is training to be a therapy dog and is happy to tag along on any of our experiences, if requested.

Wildstarts logo. Sussex birding tours. London birdwatching tours. Guided birding in Sussex and London. Wildlife experiences in Sussex. Family activities in Sussex. Outdoor Sussex. Gifts for bird lovers and birdwatchers.
info@wildstarts.com
07928 764818
Google reviews for Wildstarts | Sussex guided birding | London bird tours | Gifts for birdwatchers
  • Wildstarts Twitter
  • Wildstarts Facebook
  • Wildstarts Instagram

Thanks for subscribing!

© Wildstarts Nature Ltd 2024 - please contact us if you'd like to use any images on this website
bottom of page