Audrey DeLella Benedict is a biologist and writer, a naturalist. She is the founder and director of Cloud Ridge Naturalists, a nonprofit natural history education and publishing program, and has guided trips from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Audrey is the author of several books, including The Salish Sea: Jewel of the Pacific Northwest and Explore the Salish Sea: A Nature Guide for Kids.

Dr. Geoffrey Hammerson retired after 32 years as research zoologist for The Nature Conservancy and NatureServe. He has taught university courses focusing on bird biology for 40 years and has led hundreds of field trips across the western hemisphere, from the Arctic to southern South America and Antarctica.

Dr. Robert Butler is an ornithologist, author, filmmaker, artist, and adjunct professor of biological sciences at Simon Fraser University. His book, The Great Blue Heron, is considered a definitive study.