James Currie

James Currie (born April 9, 1972) is a birding expert, conservation advocate, and host of Nikon’s Birding Adventures TV and Nat Geo Wild’s Aerial Assassins.

Early life Currie was born and raised in Cape Town, South Africa. His parents owned and ran the restaurant at Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens on Table Mountain. Currie started birdwatching around the age of seven, He holds a Bachelor’s degree in African languages (he speaks Xhosa, Zulu and Afrikaans) from the University of Cape Town;

Television

Birding Adventures TV Currie created, produces and hosts Birding Adventures TV. The show, sponsored by Nikon, debuted in 2009 and was initially broadcast regionally on Fox Sports Net Florida and Comcast Southeast. In 2012, the show aired nationally on NBC Sports Network. It focuses on rare and unusual birds, “the adventure of birding, the new smells, new bird calls, new wildlife and amazing cultures,” and emphasizes the importance of bird and wildlife habitat preservation. There are 13 episodes per season. The show premiered on January 20, 2012.

Books and other media Currie consulted on and provided footage for the 2011 film The Big Year, a comedy about a bird-spotting competition, starring Steve Martin, Jack Black and Owen Wilson. He contributes to the American Birding Association’s blog.

Currie produced a 24-part series of lectures about birding for the Teaching Company’s The Great Courses titled The National Geographic Guide to Birding in North America.

In 2014, Currie published his memoir When Eagles Roar: The Amazing Journey of an African Wildlife Adventurer .

In 2016, Currie launched a Kickstarter campaign to film Last of the Big Tuskers, a documentary inspired by the death of Isilo, the largest tusker in the Southern Hemisphere. Currie traveled throughout South Africa and Kenya to film the largest elephants on earth and document what is being done to ensure their survival. The documentary was released in 2018.

Personal life Currie and his wife Rebecca have three children. They have lived in Lake Worth Beach, Florida, since 2007.