Ben Greenaway

Ben Greenaway

Ben first came to our attention as a regular guest on our tours. It was immediately apparent that he was very enthusiastic about butterflies and that he had impressive knowledge of them and their ecology, plus the willingness and communication skills to share this everyone else – all fine qualities which we look for in our leaders!

Ben led his first tours for us in Italy and Turkey during 2022 and garnered universal appreciation and praise from all the guests he was with and guides he was working alongside. Guests were impressed by Ben’s knowledge, but also and importantly, by his attentiveness and patience in the field – understanding what they’re looking to get out of the tour and then helping them to achieve their goals.

In 2023 Ben will be leading in Turkey, Italy, and Bulgaria. And we’re confident that this is just the beginning of a long and successful career in tour leading with us.

Ben grew up in Birmingham and has had a keen interest in butterflies since childhood. His lifelong passion for them was triggered with exposure to the magic of metamorphosis through the captive rearing of common species found in local parks.

In later life Ben spent several years working as an ecologist and educational officer at Stratford upon Avon butterfly farm, where he gained experience of rearing tropical species and leading daily tours for visitors.

He began taking regular butterfly focused trips around Europe in his late 20’s. He specialises now in Eastern Europe and Turkey but has excellent species knowledge and identification skills throughout Europe.

Ben now lives with his young family in Brighton, within walking distance from the South Downs. He dedicates much of the year to field studies, taking poorly understood aspects of butterfly ecology and seeking to further our knowledge through meticulous observation and record keeping.

Much of his recent work has focused on Purple Emperor and Small Tortoiseshell ecology for which he was recognised in 2022 with the prestigious UK Butterflies Outstanding Contribution Award.