Paul Dukes (1946 – 2025), our Naturetrek colleague & friend. A Tribute.

Paul Alexander Dukes was born in 1946 and completed the family as a much-loved younger brother and son. He was a Londoner – at least by birth and upbringing, if not by natural inclination. From a young age nature fascinated him, and his interest in birds took off when he was about 10. At that time, the family lived near Beddington Sewerage Farm and Paul would regularly head off on his bike to enjoy its birds. So began a lifelong passion.

It was not long before he was venturing a little further afield with like-minded friends on outings with the London Natural History Society. Then, as a young adult, he began to explore more widely, financing his adventures with spells in the Civil Service, a line of work that he tolerated as a means to an end. He escaped to Norfolk whenever he could, and to Minsmere and Portland too. In the former, he was often to be encountered on the East Bank at Cley, where he and others traditionally spent their nights in ‘the Beach Hotel’ – a simple beach shelter where narrow slatted seats provided just enough room for an uncomfortable night in a sleeping bag. It was a thrifty manner in which to pursue a passion, but one shared by birders of Paul’s era, almost as a badge of honour.

Then, in 1966, Paul made his first trip to the Scilly Isles, where he stayed on the quiet little island of St Agnes with a select band of other dedicated ornithologists, as they were then known. This idyllic island embraced him in its magical hold, and provided him with a lifetime place of retreat. He loved the place, and returned every October, from that time until 2024… and often in June too. A quietly spoken, intelligent and thoughtful person, Paul lapped up the easy camaraderie of, and conversation with, St Agnes residents and visiting birders alike, whether on a quiet evening in the Turk’s Head pub or in some quiet corner of the island.

It was on St Agnes, whilst holding court to his friends and admirers on the steps of ‘the Parsonage’, that I first got to know Paul. It was October 1978, and he had just found a Greenish Warbler (new to me at that time)… oh, and Britain’s first Semipalmated Plover (in 1987 he also found Britain’s first-ever Wood Thrush on the island). It was in this way that Paul got to know so many birders over the years, and made so many friends. He had time for everyone; time to chat endlessly in an unassuming yet informative and helpful way. A man of imposing stature and appearance, and with the long black hair and bushy beard that were a right of passage of that time, Paul possessed a disarmingly patient, gentle and gentlemanly nature. On St Agnes, he was a permanent fixture, held in great affection by all whom he encountered there.

Yet it was far from Scilly that Paul first made his name. In 1970, when ‘overlanding’ along the ‘Hippie Trail’ was at its zenith, and long hair, kaftans, Afghan coats and flares were the order of the day, Paul joined the pioneering handful of British birders who, seizing the opportunity of the cheap travel of that time, were looking to explore new horizons to the east. Thus Paul, with his heavyweight ‘bins’, leather-cased brass ‘scope’ and Hippie attire, first headed overland with his friends to explore Iran – a country of which he always retained wonderful memories, proud to have been able to experience its avifauna before the Iranian Revolution of 1979 put paid to that opportunity. Birding holidays to Morocco, Greece, Austria and the Camargue followed over the next three years (and later to the USA, Egypt and overland to explore Yugoslavia and Turkey) – all destinations that, in those days, were relatively new and exciting ones for the adventurous birder. However, it was his overland journey to India and Nepal with Steve Madge, during the winter of 1973/74, that gave Paul such a love of the Subcontinent and the experience of its avifauna that impressed and inspired so many contemporary and younger birders, including me. Then, hooked, Paul headed ‘solo’ back to the region for the winter of 1975/76, enjoying India and its birds again before exploring Sri Lanka, the country that absorbed him like no other, and to which he returned almost annually over the next thirty years. Another island, like St Agnes, peaceful then and welcoming, whose friendly people, manageable size, varied landscapes and rewarding birding particularly appealed to Paul.

Paul retired in 2012. His chosen home in Cornwall continued to provide him with easy access to the Scilly Isles for his annual spring and autumn pilgrimages, but it did prevent him from travelling further afield. It was up to his friends to visit him, which we did… always to be warmly welcomed, and the occasion invariably celebrated with a cream tea, or cakes, or at least a large ice cream. Indeed, all of his friends and family retain fond memories of Paul’s lifelong enjoyment of food. His niece, Kerry, recalls his love of Angel Delight, astonished when spending a week with Paul at his home in Devon to find that ‘he practically lived off it!’ Others remember his encyclopaedic knowledge of those UK-wide cafés and ‘greasy spoons’ best suited for breaks and sustenance during British ‘twitches’ and other birding forays. Indeed, it was Paul who is credited with being the very first birder to discover and patronise Nancy’s café in Cley, Norfolk – that welcoming birders’ hub for sustenance and nationwide communication of bird news so essential to the twitching world of the 1970s and 80s, before the days of pagers and mobile phones. Paul, himself, could also cook well. His Scillies’ house-mates speak fondly of his traditional ‘roast dinners’, while a St Agnes farmer recalls astonishment when Paul arrived on the island to place an order for a hundredweight of potatoes from him… and, of course, no-one will forget Paul’s inability to start the day without first cooking himself a full English breakfast!

His love of dogs – whether his own or those of others that he kindly volunteered to care for – kept him busy on coast walks from his home each morning, and in his local woods. He had first acquired a Border Collie pup, Jessie, on moving to Cornwall, and her eventual passing hit Paul hard. He couldn’t face getting another dog, so instead he volunteered as a dog walker with the Cinnamon Trust and so inherited Tilly, the dog of an elderly local lady which he walked for her prior to her death. Tilly became Paul’s constant companion, and they visited his beloved Scillies as often as they could. Tilly accompanied Paul on his birding walks to the end, and resident Scillonian birder Will Wagstaff last remembers them together as Paul enjoyed a rare Red-flanked Bluetail in Holy Vale, on St Mary’s, just last autumn. The Scillies, and St Agnes especially, will not be the same without him.

By February Paul was unwell, and was diagnosed with cancer in April. Typically he chose to keep this from his friends. By this time, he and Cathy had been amicably separated for some years, but they remained very close and Cathy kept a careful eye on Paul to the end. When he passed away peacefully at his home on 25^th June, his family, friends (particularly those from the birding community), and all those who had the good fortune to know Paul well lost a wonderful, kindly soul, a gentleman, and a character much loved by all. His passing marks the end of an era. He was an ‘old school’ birder and one of the best.

One anecdote remains. When Paul joined Naturetrek, and a customer would phone to discuss one of Paul’s specialist areas – be it Sri Lanka, Trinidad & Tobago or another – the caller would  be politely advised, “I’ll just put you through to Paul Dukes”. So often the response came back, “Not THE Paul Dukes!?”. Of course, to all who knew Paul well, and have lost a very special friend, he was, undoubtedly, THE Paul Dukes.

David Mills, Naturetrek Founder & Chairman