Joseph Forshaw

Joseph Michael Forshaw was born Newcastle, Australia. He was trained as a pharmacist. In 1960, he took a job as a biologist at the CSIRO Division of Wildlife Research in Canberra. In this position, he managed to turn a lifelong fascination with parrots into an academic pursuit. In 1964 he was granted a fellowship to study specimens of Australian parrots in the Mathews Collection of the American Museum of Natural History in New York. From this research he produced his first book, Australian Parrots, which was published in 1969.

In 1969, Forshaw met William T. Cooper at an exhibition of bird paintings being held in Canberra. Cooper agreed to illustrate Forshaw's new project, Parrots of the World, which was published in 1973. The two men became friends and continue to produce bird book monographs.

In 1974, Forshaw left the CSIRO Division of Wildlife Research to become a senior environmental officer with the Australian National Parks and Wildlife Service. In 1977, he received the Queen's Silver Jubilee Medal. In 1978 he became chair of the International Council for Bird Preservation World Working Group on Parrots. In 1996, he was one of the first honorary members of the Birds Australia Parrots Association. Forshaw is considered to be the world's foremost expert on parrots. He is a currently Research Associate in the Department of Ornithology at the Australian Museum, Sydney, and is a Corresponding Fellow of the American Ornithologists Union.