Martin has a passion for wildlife and
it is his quest to educate and inform people about the natural wonders of
Australia. With this in mind, Martin conceived and runs the Wild About Australia concept with his partner Julia Cooper.
Background
Martin is a true-blue Aussie boy, who grew up in Melbourne
playing cricket and Australian Rules football. While growing up, and
to his parent's
dismay, Martin brought home and kept a menagerie of wildlife such as
frogs, lizards, turtles and even poisonous snakes! After completing
a biology degree, Martin left for the wild tropics of North Queensland
where he has made his love of wildlife and the great outdoors his career.
Skills
Martin knows Australia and its wildlife and there is no one better to guide
people into this mystical world. With his extensive wildlife background,
Martin can bring the best out of people working in the field so that others
can learn secrets about best locations and techniques to find animals and
can provide up-to-date wildlife information.
Martin has a relaxed, easy-going yet concise style of portraying wildlife information.
People relate to his honest, plain-speaking, friendly manner.
Martin is a
true professional and backs up this style with a wealth of knowledge and experience
and is adventurous without being over the
top.
Martin has
worked as a zoologist and wildlife commentator for over 15 years. During
this time he has conducted numerous wildlife surveys, been involved in
wildlife research (including a PhD on cane toads), and undertaken biodiversity
monitoring programs. He has also worked with community conservation groups,
guided eco-tours all over Australia, written countless popular wildlife
articles and presented wildlife and conservation talks to people from all
walks of life. He was even sponsored by Land Rover to drive right around
Australia in 80 days and write about his experiences including the best
wildlife locations and places to camp. Over the last five years, Martin
has been involved in researching and presenting wildlife information on
television and radio. More recently he worked as the Senior Researcher
for the successful and popular BBC/ABC Natural History Unit’s award-winning
six-part series on Australasian wildlife entitled ‘Wild Down Under’/’Wild
Australasia’. Recently he has also worked on successful BBC series
including the ‘Really Wild Show’ and the major
2004 live broadcast of ‘Britain Goes Wild’.
