Following a 27-year business career in the US and England, Brooks Childress began a new career in biodiversity conservation. He undertook postgraduate research at the University of Leicester, UK, leading to a PhD in Biological Sciences in 1998. Since receiving his degree, he has served simultaneously as honorary Research Associate at the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust, Slimbridge, UK and in the Department of Ornithology, National Museums of Kenya, Nairobi, Kenya.

From 2001 to 2004 Brooks conducted biometric (the application of statistical methods to biological facts), behaviour and satellite tracking studies of the lesser flamingo in East Africa. As part of this work, he developed, funded and implemented a multi-year satellite tracking study, instituted an ongoing ringing programme, and developed the first biometric database by age and sex for wild lesser flamingos, amongst other projects. Brooks was appointed chair of the Flamingo Specialist Group in November 2004.

During the past year, the Group has substantially increased its capacity to provide timely, innovative, and practical solutions to flamingo conservation challenges. Membership has been increased from 39 to 166, with representatives from 49 countries involved in the study, monitoring, management and conservation of the world’s six flamingo species, both in the wild and in captivity. All members of the Group are now linked by a new Flamingo Specialist E-Group (an e-mail listserv), and a reformatted annual bulletin. A new website is planned for 2006. During 2005, the Group has contributed to the revised flamingo Red List information sheets, and provided updated population estimates for the new edition of Waterbird Population Estimates, No. 4, helping to ensure that decisions and policies affecting flamingo conservation are influenced by the latest scientific information.

“During the remainder of the 2005–2008 intersessional period, our efforts will be focused on the development of conservation action plans for the three most threatened flamingo species – the Andean and James's flamingos of the high Andes in South America, and the lesser flamingo of Africa and Asia – and obtaining endorsement of these plans by the appropriate conservation conventions and range state governments,” says Brooks.

“These plans will encompass scientific assessments of the current population status, distribution, conservation status, conservation threats and necessary conservation measures for each of these threatened species, to ensure that decisions and policies affecting their conservation are influenced by sound interdisciplinary scientific information,” he adds.