Bernie Forbes 

Bernie is a highly experienced tour leader with a deep love of nature and birding, and his groups enjoy great birding in his company, learning from his vast experience of bird calls and songs.

A former crew commander in the Fire Service, serving in London and East Sussex, Bernie lives in Lancing on the sunny Sussex coast. Bernie has been birding throughout his life, and is currently President of the Shoreham and District Ornithological Society, which is thriving! In the past he has held many roles within the Society including Recorder, Chairman and Outings Organiser. He is also an active member of the Sussex Ornithological Society sitting on the Sussex Rare Bird Records Committee for his third term, adjudicating on rare bird submissions in the county. He has proven track record for finding rare species including the first Gyr Falcon and first and second Pallid Harrier for Sussex. In addition he helps to organise the Field Outing Programme for this Society, which has one of the largest county memberships in the country.

When at home he is a very active Field Leader frequently helping to improve local birders' identification skills. Bernie is an active contributor to local bird reports, always sharing his bird finds on blogs and user groups, and an active RSPB volunteer as a participant in work around Pagham Harbour. If you birdwatch around the reserve you may well have sat on one of the many benches he has made or climbed some of the steps and stiles he has built! Bernie is well known for his passion for birds and his commitment to conservation helping to raise considerable sums of money for the Spring and New Year Bird Race days.

Bernie has led many groups in Europe, North Africa, Turkey and Texas, and has been a Heatherlea Guide for several years, in a number of destinations including Scotland as well as overseas. Popular and in great demand, Bernie still leads field trips around Sussex when not working for Heatherlea!