Miles McMullan

McMullan has worked with a number of conservation organizations and foundations, especially in bird conservation in the tropical Americas. He is a devoted environmentalist who has never owned or even driven a motor vehicle. He has spoken about the detrimental environmental impact of the fashion for global bird tourism, instead advocating the benefits of low-carbon flight-free local birding. On the basis of these beliefs, he has stopped working as an international bird guide. He is involved with indigenous communities such as the Awá of southwestern Colombia and the conservation of their lands and is an active campaigner and donor in activism to combat climate change. The Colombian government made a special recognition of his work with rural women's groups in Colombia in 2022.

He has specialised in making nature guidebooks for the most diverse countries of tropical South American countries including Venezuela, Colombia and Ecuador, where he has worked as a naturalist and author. His influential guide to the birds of Colombia was named second best bird book of 2010, second only to the acclaimed Collins Birds of Europe, and Neotropical Bird Club named his guides among the 25 best books of the past 25 years, noting their concise treatment of very large avifaunas. His Colombia book, with over 5000 illustrations and 2000 range distribution maps has been described as among the largest books ever made by a single author/illustrator.

His titles include Field Guide to the Birds of Colombia (with Thomas Donegan) (2010, updates in 2014 and 2018), Fieldbook of the Birds of Ecuador (with Lelis Navarrete) (2013, updated 2017), Field Guide to the Hummingbirds (2016), Field Guide to the Galapagos Islands (2017), Birds of the Colombian Andes (2019), Birds of Meta and the Colombian Llanos (2019), Birds of the Western Cordillera (2019), Birds and Common Mammals of Ecuadorian Amazon (with Andrés Vásquez) (2012), Birds of Northwest Ecuador (with Andrés Vásquez) and many other smaller titles and research articles. His illustrations have appeared in several other books, articles, publications, including the collection of the National Bank of Colombia.

Miles studied at Our Lady and St. Patrick's College, Ulster University and Trinity College, Dublin. He worked as a landscape and portrait painter and interior designer and decorator in his early years. He is a qualified editor and worked writing academic texts before concentrating in the wildlife field guides that he has made since 2008.

Miles McMullan (born 1 August 1967 in Bangor) is an author, conservationist and naturalist from Northern Ireland, who has made innovative books on neotropical wildlife.