Peter Hayman

Peter Hayman (17 February 1930 – 2025) was a British ornithologist and illustrator.

Life and career Hayman was born in Uxbridge, Middlesex, England on 17 February 1930. After his education in Taunton school he studied architecture. He worked as an architect for several years in London but in 1969 he became an artist. His main interest was water-colour paintings of British birds. In 1976 the British publisher Mitchell Beazley released the book "The Birdlife of Britain" which was written by Philip John Kennedy Burton and illustrated by Hayman. In the 1980s he illustrated some books which were published as Helm Identification Guides. In 1991 he published "The Complete Guide to the Birdlife of Britain & Europe". This richly illustrated book with 3,500 water colour paintings which was published in collaboration with Rob Hume was translated in several languages, and became a popular bird guide in Europe. Hume recognises this as one of his most pleasing books, being honoured to have been chosen by the artist as his collaborator on the text. He believes it has some of Hayman's most accurate yet also most beautiful work, which took bird identification illustrations to a new level. Hayman died in 2025.