Stuart Elsom

Stuart Elsom is freelance ecologist and wildlife photographer who lives in Cambridgeshire. A keen naturalist from an early age, his passion for wildlife conservation has seen him serve on several regional environmental and conservation forums and he is a former chairman of his local bird club. 

Stuart’s lifelong interest in birds and insects has taken him to many countries on six continents. Recently he has specialized in the birds of the New World with both North and South America and The Caribbean being the focus of his attention. 

Stuart is an enthusiastic wildlife photographer and a member of the Royal Photographic Society Nature Group, through which he was awarded his Licentiate Distinction (LRPS) in 2012. Over 500 of his images have appeared in various natural history journals, magazines, CD guides and books including Owls of the World; Birds of Brazil; The Crossley Guide series and Stokes Birds of North America.Over 10,000 images from both his UK forays and worldwide travels can be seen on his Flickr pages. He also contributes to the Handbook of the Birds of the World Internet Bird Collection. 

While birds are Stuart’s main focus he has always maintained a huge interest in insects, especially butterflies and moths, dragonflies and damselflies, and hoverflies; the subject of his MSc dissertation at Manchester Metropolitan University. He is a member of the British Entomological and Natural History Society and an active member of The Dipterists Forum. 

As a professional ecologist, Stuart undertakes a wide range of surveys on protected habitats and species including vascular plants, bats, birds, reptiles and amphibians, mammals and invertebrates. He is a member of The Chartered Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management and in 2013 he was elected a member of the Royal Society of Biology, through which he runs workshops on wildlife photography and bird identification. 

Even though Stuart is travelling for much of the year, he is still an active volunteer with his local wildlife trust Woodland Ecology Group when time permits, and takes a particular interest in their conservation initiatives and projects, details of which can be found on his website.