Russell McGregor has been a birdwatcher since childhood and an historian for over 40 years. Formerly a professor of history at James Cook University, he has written numerous articles on birds and birdwatching, and is also the author of six previous books, including Indifferent Inclusion: Aboriginal people and the Australian nation (winner of the 2012 New South Wales Premier's Australian History Prize), and Idling in Green Places: a life of Alec Chisholm (shortlisted for the 2020 National Biography Award).