Michael Ralph Lubbock MBE (57-61) died at his home in Scotland Neck, North Carolina,
USA on September 7,2024 at the age of 80. He is survived by his wife Ali and his son Brent.
He had been suffering from poor health in recent years and was unable to travel to the UK in
2024 to receive an MBE award from King Charles III.
Mike arrived at The Nautical College from Kestrels, a small prep school in Devon in 1957.
He was in Hesperus Division and became a valued member of both the 1st XI cricket teams in
1959 and 1960 (in which he bowled skilfully flighted left arm slow turners) and the cross-
country running team in 1960 and 1961, representing Berkshire in the 1961 English Schools
championship. According to Ali, he had fond memories of Pangbourne and kept his 1st XI
Colours cap close by him to the end of his days.
It was at the NCP, too, that his lifelong love of mammals and birds, first encouraged by his
mother on the family dairy farm in Somerset, grew and developed and he became the leading
light in the Natural History Society. A contemporary recalls him adopting a jackdaw that had
fallen from its nest and carrying it around the campus at all times of the day. Gazing over the
Thames Valley countryside from a window at the school, it was then that he knew that he
wanted to devote his life to work with birds according to a biography of him The Waterfowl
Man published in 2014.
An obituary published by his local newspaper the News & Observer on September 12 stated:
“After graduating from Pangbourne Nautical College, Mike's career began in 1961 as a
volunteer at the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust in Slimbridge, England, where his natural
aptitude for the care and propagation of waterfowl quickly earned him employment as an
aviculturist. Mike would eventually hold positions as Curator and Director of Aviculture at
the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust. It was here that he also met his wife, Ali, in 1974.
During his early years at the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, Mike earned extra money as a
dancer on the 1960s British television show "Discs-a-Go-Go" where he performed alongside
fledgling rock and roll acts like the Beatles, Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, and
Tom Jones. While dancing paid the bills, his dedication and talent for bird conservation
continued to grow at the Wildfowl Trust. In 1975, Mike was invited to Buckingham Palace to
advise Queen Elizabeth II about her flock of Red-breasted Geese on the palace grounds and
would make regular visits over the next few years as Her Majestys avicultural advisor.
Mikes determination to save waterfowl led him on a series of global adventures, and he
would embark on more than 20 conservation expeditions during his career. In the Hawaiian
Islands, he assisted in a program to save the endangered Hawaiian Goose, which would
eventually result in the recovery of the species. In Spain, he spearheaded efforts to save the
White-headed Duck, restoring the population from a mere 30 individuals to nearly 3,000
birds today. During expeditions to Iceland, Australia, Patagonia, Alaska, and Botswana, he
collected eggs that would contribute to breeding programs for several waterfowl species.
Mike has provided expertise and support for the conservation of the critically endangered
Brazilian Merganser, established North America's captive breeding program for the
endangered White-winged Duck, and helped to boost dwindling populations of White-faced
Whistling Ducks and Bahama Pintail in Trinidad.

In 1981, Mike, Ali, and their son, Brent, moved from England to the United States and
founded Sylvan Heights Waterfowl in the mountain town of Sylva, North Carolina. The
family and facility relocated to Scotland Neck, North Carolina in 1989, where it has grown
into the world's largest collection of waterfowl species.

Throughout his career, Mike sought to share his knowledge and experience with the next
generations of aviculturists and conservationists. Mike and Ali have welcomed hundreds of
interns, volunteers, and students from around the world to Sylvan Heights and into their
home, where Mike would relate stories around the dinner table of his expeditions, brief
dancing career, and visits with Her Majesty the Queen. The opening of Sylvan Heights Bird
Park in 2006 was a realization of the Lubbocks desire to share their extraordinary birds with
the rest of the world.
Mike's innovative aviculture techniques and dedication to waterfowl conservation earned him
numerous accolades. He achieved 17 world first breedings and 15 North American first
breedings, an induction into the International Wild Waterfowl Association Hall of Fame and
received the Jean Delacour Avicultural Award. In 2023, Mike Lubbock and his wife Ali were
each recognized by the highest civilian honour given in North Carolina: The Order of the
Long Leaf Pine. In April 2024, he was awarded the prestigious honour of an MBE (Most
Excellent Order of the British Empire) by King Charles III to acknowledge his outstanding
services for Global Wildlife Conservation of Water Birds.
When Mike wasn't breeding birds or traveling the world, he would still likely be found
outdoors. He was an avid hunter, fisherman, and birder, as well as a single malt Scotch
whisky aficionado.
Mike dedicated his life and career to the care and conservation of the world's birds. He has
left a lasting legacy through his tremendous contributions to aviculture, through the many
people he mentored, and through Sylvan Heights Bird Park, where his work will continue to
inspire future generations of conservationists. He will be greatly missed by his family,
friends, and the many people from around the world with whom he so willingly shared his
knowledge and passion for birds.”

Robin Knight (56-61) adds: “In 2014 I reviewed Mike’s biography and ended the piece with
these words: “The Waterfowl Man” published in 2014 traces this fulfilling journey in detail.
Based on Mike’s notebooks and interviews with him, it records numerous hair-raising
incidents. One that stands out is a trip to Patagonia in 1981 when he escaped with his life
after the small boat he was sailing in rough seas near Port Aguirre capsized and a colleague
drowned. Mike swam for his life fully-clothed to a nearby deserted islet, remembering as he
did so a similar challenge in the Thames while at the NCP. “I guess the training was useful
after all,” he recalled laconically.

It is given to comparatively few people to do exactly what they want with their lives but Mike
Lubbock is one of them. As this meticulous biography underlines, he has known from a
young age what he wanted to do. He has been prepared to live dangerously and make toughpersonal choices to turn aspiration into reality. He comes across as observant, imaginative, determined and altruistic.  The collection of rare bird breeds that he has built up so painstakingly at Sylvan Heights is based not on size or profit but on preventing extinctions.Future generations will thank him.”