Bio Patrick Dunn

Retired zoo director, aviculturist, ornithologist, and avid insect collector, Patrick Dunn came up through the ranks from zoo keeper to curator and on to director of a well-known zoological facility. As a result of positions that range from General Curator to Executive Director including Curator of exhibits, professional consultant in designing captive animal habitats, quarantine facilities, commissaries, procurement and transport of exotic animals and birds, management and administration his knowledge spans the field.

Patrick, behind the scenes at the newly renovated   National History Museum in Nairobi, Kenya, Africa

Responsible for the development design and construction direction of Kauai Zoological Gardens, state of Hawaii U.S.A. He also wrote a complete training manual for the husbandry techniques of the exotic animal collection at the zoo and implemented that program in the training of 13 full-time zoo keepers.

As director of that facility for 8 years and working with the Hemmeter Group, he conceived to successful operation a unique and highly acclaimed moated zoo of seven islands in naturally landscaped environments within a 50-acre freshwater lagoon where more than 60 species of animals and birds totaling more than 250 specimens resided compatibly with no bars and no cages.

A student of the life histories, plumage, distribution, and Taxonomy of birds he has traveled extensively throughout Central and South America, Africa, Madagascar, Australia, Tasmania, and New Zealand as well as many island archipelagos in search of birds, animals, and insects he has yet to discover. He keeps a life list of birds seen which now totals over 3,400 of the planets near 10,000 species.

Patrick 2013 with Puffer

He tends an insect collection of over 10,000 specimens and is also an accomplished taxidermist and avid scuba diver.

Still operating and running safaris to East Africa after some 10 years, he has finally retired to Costa Rica in the south of the country where he owns and operates an endangered species breeding facility known as Ave Azul de la Osa. Come visit!

The conservation message is…..Extinction is forever…. Endangered means… we still have time…