Naturalist, zoologist (esp. ornithologist), author, filmmaker, lecturer etc.
John Sparks was Head of the BBC Natural History Unit in Bristol and one of the responsibles in the series "Life on Earth", "The Natural World", "Realms of the Russian Bear" and many other wildlife documentaries. He is Fellow of the Zoological Society and trustee (president) of the Gaia Trust.
(Sources see "Links")
"John is also a keen photographer, a bibliophile, collects Victorian microscopes, plays the pipe organ, and flies an ultralight (to emulate what birds can do better)."
(http://www.gaiatrust.org.uk/management.html)
(Note: gaiatrust.org is also the source and probably right holder of the foto shown here.)
Relationships to: David Attenborough, Desmond Morris, Tony Soper, ...