Gerald Durrell

Gerald ('Gerry') Durrell (January 7, 1925 - January 30, 1995) was a naturalist, zookeeper, author, and television presenter, best known for founding the Jersey Zoological Park (now known as the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust) on the Channel Island Jersey in 1958, and for writing a number of books based on his animal-collecting expeditions.

Biography

Durrell was born in Jamshedpur, India of British parents. The family returned to the UK after the death of his father in 1928, and moved to mainland Europe in 1933. They eventually settled on the Greek island of Corfu, where Durrell began to collect and keep as pets the local fauna, and stayed until 1939: this interval was later the basis of his best-known book, My Family and Other Animals, and its successors, Birds, Beasts, and Relatives and The Garden of the Gods.

Related Topics:
Jamshedpur - India - UK - 1928 - 1933 - Greek - Corfu - Pet - Fauna - 1939 - My Family and Other Animals

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In 1945, Durrell joined Whipsnade Zoo as a junior keeper. This move fulfilled a lifelong dream: Durrell claims that his first spoken word was "zoo."

Related Topics:
1945 - Whipsnade Zoo

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Durrell's wildlife expeditions began with a 1947 trip to Bafut, in the area that later became the country of Cameroon (financed by a £3,000 inheritance). He continued for many decades, during which time he became famous for his work for wildlife conservation.

Related Topics:
1947 - Bafut - Cameroon - Inheritance - Conservation

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On July 6 1963, he established the Jersey Wildlife Preservation Trust, known since his death as the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, to establish, at his zoo, breeding colonies of endangered species.

Related Topics:
July 6 - 1963 - Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust - Endangered species

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Durrell was helped by his first wife, Jacqueline, and later by his second wife, Lee McGeorge Durrell, whom he met in 1977 when he gave a lecture at Duke University in North Carolina where Lee, a zoology instructor, was studying for a PhD.

Related Topics:
Lee McGeorge Durrell - 1977 - Duke University - North Carolina

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Durrell received the Order of the British Empire in 1982.

Related Topics:
Order of the British Empire - 1982

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The movie Fierce Creatures was dedicated to him.

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