Andrew is an all round expert naturalist, botanist, accomplished artist and our county recorder for lichens. His interest in recording lichens was kindled 15 years ago, so he attended some lichen courses and with great perseverance and determination has become the county?s leading lichenologist. Along the way he gained an Open University degree, specialising in geology and ecology.

Ten years ago, when he became County Recorder, there were about 3000 Hertfordshire records, now there are 10,000, all submitted to the British Lichen Society database. Andrew's personal challenge was to reach this target before New Years Day 2014, he did it with three days to spare! The records were gathered through a programme of surveys of churchyards, nature reserves and other wildlife sites. In 2010/11 he surveyed many private gardens for the British Lichen Society, so many in fact, that Hertfordshire needed its own section in the national results table when it was published.

Andrew is a 'Wildlife Sites' surveyor and assessor for the Herts & Middlesex Wildlife Trust and a key member of the Herts Flora Group and the British Naturalists' Association, Herts branch. Andrew devotes considerable time to helping and encouraging other would-be lichenologists, patiently answering questions and encouraging others to join him in his churchyard surveys.