Richard Cook

Richard was born in Hanover, Germany in 1974, and has since lived not only in Germany and the UK, but also in Australia, Belgium and Nigeria. Among his earliest memories are of seeing Red Bishops with his father in Nigeria as a seven year old.

After a spell working for sports TV (TWI) for several years in London, Richard decided to move to Japan in 2002. At first he lived in Tokyo, but quickly relocated to Okinawa where he has set up home and family.

He works primarily as an English teacher, but since arriving in Okinawa he has developed an interest in digital photography. His general interest in photography has steadily morphed into a growing passion for bird photography, and that has led him to take a keen interest in the birds themselves and their behaviour, habits and habitat.

Richard travels extensively throughout the main island of Okinawa, exploring its habitats and seeking out its birdlife, though with a young family his focus and priorities have shifted somewhat. Nevertheless he is enthusiastic about sharing his local knowledge of the island to help visiting birders and photographers in their quest to see some of Okinawa island's beautiful flora and fauna.

Richard feels blessed to live on Okinawa as it is truly beautiful with some lovely birds. His idea of a perfect day (when not spending it entirely with his family) is to be in Yanbaru (northern Okinawa) in the early morning watching some of his favourite birds such as Okinawa Rail, Okinawan Woodpecker, Ryukyu Robin, Japanese Paradise Flycatcher, and Ruddy Kingfisher or a wintering Siberian Rubythroat and then to return home to watch rugby, cricket or football with a couple of cold ones.

Last updated: 20150929