Ross Crates  - PhD student at Australia National University

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​I have, for some reason, been fascinated by birds from a young age. Growing up in Kent, England, I was fortunate to be surrounded by nature. A young birders course at Sandwich Bay Bird Observatory allowed me to meet other young people with a similar passion for birds. That same week during the Autumn migration was my first exposure to bird ringing, which fuelled my passion for birds further!

​I studied ecology at the University of East Anglia; arguably the default university for young ecologists with a passion for birds. I combined my study with many trips away birding and ringing in the wild lands of Norfolk, and also spent a year as an exchange student at the University of Wollongong, where I studied the ecology of fairy wrens. After graduating, I worked as a research assistant at the Edward Grey Institute, University of Oxford, on a large scale study into the social ecology of wild songbirds using novel tracking devices. I'm now a PhD student at Australia  National University, working on conservation of the critically endangered regent honeyeater. ​My studies have allowed me to turn my hobby into a career in science. For this, I am extremely grateful :)