Dan O’Neill
Field biologist, wildlife filmmaker and TV presenter
Dan O'Neill is an experienced field biologist, wildlife filmmaker, explorer, and presenter, who specialises in remote and challenging environments, and camera trap technology.
Film work
Love Nature has recently commissioned Snow Leopards with Dan O’Neill. The series follows Dan as he goes on an extreme conservation mission to the mountains of Kyrgzstan and Mongolia to reveal the hunting behaviour, social dynamics and territorial range of these elusive animals.
Dan’s five-part series Giants (produced by Off The Fence for Curiosity Stream) premiered in May 2023. The series circles the globe on five epic expeditions to find the biggest beasts to have walked the planet. ’Giants’ marked the first time in history openly LGBT wildlife presenter hosted a series for a major network.
Recently, Dan filmed Hawk Boy for the BBC’s The One Show, and work for BBC Earth includes Snow Leopards: Ghosts in the Snow - a four-part docu-series which follows his expedition with the Snow Leopard Trust into the mountains of Kyrgyzstan. In Dan O'Neill Investigates, he explores the illegal wildlife trade and animal cruelty, and in After We’ve Gone, shows how nature thrives after humans leave.
In 2020, Dan travelled to rebel-occupied western Mindanao, to learn the conservation story of the most endangered raptor on the planet, the Philippine eagle. His film, Queen of Birds, which documented his journey, has been viewed over 2.3 million times.
Dan's varied work includes shooting and directing longform TV wildlife and expedition documentaries and digital mini series, co-producing nature-inspired music with Grammy-winning artist Imogen Heap, and in the creative direction of projects spanning from live events to digital fashion campaigns.
Expeditions
Dan has organised numerous expeditions to find and study rare animals from the pristine jungles of the northern Amazon and Mayan temple ruins of the Yucatan, to the frozen peaks of Central Asia. He is regularly involved in field studies, primarily working as a mammal specialist, expedition leader and camera-trap technician.
Most recently, he joined the Hyderabad Tiger Conservation Society to camera trap and track tigers in India’s largest tiger reserve. Earlier this year he led a snow leopard field trip in Kyrgyzstan and then joined a biodiversity research trip in Mexico in June. In December 2023 Dan led an expedition to Guyana, and in June 2023, he led a six-week scientific study to Cusuco, Honduras, capturing and ringing tropical forest birds and camera-trapping large mammals.
In 2021, supported by indigenous people, he led an expedition in search of jaguars which he documented in Last Eden: Guyana.
Speaker
A popular speaker, host and compere, Dan’s extensive knowledge, storytelling expertise and exuberant personality allow him to connect with audiences of all backgrounds, ages, and interests.
Key topics include sustainability, conservation, LGBTQIA+, extreme environments, and motivation.
Speaker testimonials:
“Dan’s personal style of storytelling is truly moving and inspiring.” Jayson Ibanez, Philippine Eagle Foundation
“Dan was an absolute delight to work with. He gave an inspiring talk to our college and university students who were fascinated and intrigued in equal measure.” Jamie Cash, Confetti Institute of Creative Technologies
Snow Leopard Trust
Dan has partnered with the Snow Leopard Trust on his upcoming PhD studies exploring snow leopard behavioural and spatial ecology using video camera traps.
In 2023, he was delighted to be appointed as The Snow Leopard Trust’s Explorer in Residence. The Snow Leopard Trust is the world’d largest organisation devoted to to protecting this enigmatic cat and its mountain habitats.
Interests
Dan continues to be a passionate advocate for increased LGBT representation in STEM, natural history media, and adventure. His work has been featured in Attitude Magazine, Gay Times, The Advocate, The Independent, BBC Radio 4 and more.
Image Credit: Chris Beard, Joseph Sinclair
