Patrick Beaumont

Patrick has been enthused by birds from a very young age; his very first memory is lying on the grass, outside home,  with his dad and brother listening to the abundance of Skylarks that surrounded them! His rural upbringing in the Scottish uplands gave him the experiences within nature that would ultimately drive the direction of his interests and professional career.

At the University of Aberdeen, Patrick studied an honours degree in Conservation Biology and then a Masters in Environmental Science in 2021. Both courses providing tremendous opportunities to learn about environment science, including a month gathering data in Shetland. Here he monitored wader populations in relation to the surrounding land uses and was also delighted to join the RSPB on an expedition to Mousa island to ring Storm Petrel.

Following university, Patrick's first taste of professional ornithological work came in Saudi Arabia's Al Wajh Lagoon, where he worked as a consultant for Island Avian Surveys, tasked with a population census for birds on 92 islands within the lagoon. He went on to become an ornithological consultant in Glasgow, where he has travelled all over Scotland to survey bird life. Some of his most memorable work has been assisting with the annual Eastern Caithness Cliffs SPA census, where he worked on land and by boat to count thousands of marine birds. On tour, he loves enthusing his guests about natural history and is always pleased to share his knowledge!