Dr Tara Pirie

Tara graduated as a Zoologist but returned to academia after completing a PhD on leopard and carnivore ecology and conservation in South Africa. Before this, Tara was a zookeeper working with a wide range of species including White Rhino, Sumatran and Amur tigers, as well as many lemur and kangaroo species. However, she was keen to observe animals in the wild so trained as a safari guide.

Tara worked in the stunning Waterberg and the world-famous Sabi Sands, in the Greater Kruger National Park, where she interpreted all aspects of the African bush from animal and plant ecology to geology and astronomy for safari guests and viewers of Safari TV on WildEarth. 

After a decade of living and working in South Africa, Tara returned to the UK and took up a postdoctoral position at the University of Reading studying UK domestic cat ranging and hunting behaviour which was highlighted in the press in 2022. Aside from the research, Tara taught undergraduates, suppervised postgraduates, and was assistant curator for the Cole Museum of Zoology. She was involved in the enormous task of redesigning and moving the Natural History Museum to its new location. 

In January 2022 Tara took up the ecology lecturer post here at the University of Surrey where she has been teaching and collaborating to aid the progression toward a more sustainable future for everyone. Tara is also the Hedgehog Champion for the University so if you would like to be in the Hedgehog working group please contact her!