GeraldDurrellwasborninJamshedpur,India,in1925.HereturnedtoEnglandin1928beforesettlingontheislandofCorfuwithhisfamily.In1945hejoinedthestaffofWhipsnadeParkasastudentkeeper,andin1947heledhisfirstanimal-collectingexpeditiontotheCameroons.Helaterundertooknumerousfurtherexpeditions,visitingParaguay,Argentina,SierraLeone,Mexico,Mauritius,AssamandMadagascar.Hisfirsttelevisionprogramme,TwointheBushwhichdocumentedhistravelstoNewZealand,AustraliaandMalayawasmadein1962;hewentontomakeseventyprogrammesabouthistripsaroundtheworld.In1959hefoundedtheJerseyZoologicalPark,andin1964hefoundedtheJerseyWildlifePreservationTrust.HewasawardedtheOBEin1982.Encouragedtowriteabouthislife'sworkbyhisbrother,Durrellpublishedhisfirstbook,TheOverloadedArk,in1953.Itsoonbecameabestsellerandhewentontowritethirty-sixothertitles,includingMyFamilyandOtherAnimals,TheBafutBeagles,EncounterswithAnimals,TheDrunkenForest,AZooinMyLuggage,TheWhisperingLand,MenagerieManor,TheAmateurNaturalistandTheAye-AyeandI.GeraldDurrelldiedin1995.