Hello, my name is Chris Gibson, an experienced and enthusiastic all-round naturalist, living in Wivenhoe, Essex, though still a Yorkshireman at heart.

In 2016 I retired (early!) from a long career with Natural England (the Government’s advisor on nature conservation). I started notifying SSSIs in Essex, and ended 31 years later dealing with national high-risk casework, helping put sustainability into offshore wind developments, and (rather bizarrely) grappling with the issues around the proposed reintroduction of Eurasian Lynx to our shores….

On the way I have been lucky to have worked with many wonderful people and project teams, and been able to leave a legacy of positive successes, including

• the ‘invention’ of the concept of coastal managed realignment, and its subsequent roll-out to become part of Government policy
• the creation of England’s first brownfield invertebrate reserve, at Canvey Wick
• enabling the expansion of Abberton Reservoir, going ‘beyond sustainability’ to produce a substantially enhanced site with no drawbacks.

Although a conservationist by profession, and an ecologist by training, everything I have done has been linked to my life-long passion for natural history. In 2009 I was lucky enough to receive the David Bellamy Award of the British Naturalists’ Association, recognising ‘a naturalist of distinction’. Now I have the time and opportunity to return to my roots as a naturalist, and to do what I do best – trying to enthuse others about the natural world.

I have written and co-written many articles and books  and made numerous radio and television appearances.  I enjoy leading wildlife walks for small groups and I am an avid photographer of the natural world – please visit the Galleries to give you some idea of what I have in my image library. Only a tiny fraction is shown here, so please return regularly to see the page as it is updated.

My illustrated talks on a wide range of wildlife topics are popular. I am happy to speak to groups large or small; please get in touch via the Contacts page for more details.

Thank you for visiting my website; lets us together put the natural world at the heart of everything we do!