Bird brain : a childhood fascination with birds -- From albatrosses to partridges : life as a wildlife trainee -- Lyrebirds and kangaroos : a year in Australia -- A new home for North Island saddlebacks -- The tragedy of Big South Cape Island -- The exploding island and the smashed dinghy -- Early black robin days in the Chathams -- Round the world visiting conservation projects -- Kakapo : the Fiordland era -- Two years on Christmas Island -- Black robin rescue -- Kakapo : rediscovery on Stewart Island -- Noisy scrub-birds in Western Australia -- Robins return -- Kakapo : to the islands -- Mauritius : Round Island rabbits and echo parakeets -- Kakapo : the turning point -- Seychelles : rats, cats and magpie robins -- Kakapo : the new era