Prof Mike Clarke is Emeritus Professor of Zoology at La Trobe University. He has a long-standing interest in the impact of fire upon fauna. He has published internationally on the ecology and conservation biology of birds, reptiles, mammals, fish and plants. He leads research, along with his colleague Prof Andrew Bennett, into the impact of fire in the Mallee, the Box-Ironbark forests, the Central Highlands, and Wilsons Promontory. He also maintains an ongoing research interest in threatened species and threatening processes. He was the Convener of the Scientific Advisory Committee on the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act to the Victorian Minister for the Environment for five years. In 2007 he was awarded the DL Serventy Medal by the Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union for his outstanding contribution to the scientific literature in ornithology. In 2010 he appeared as an expert witness in fire ecology at the Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission. He was the Head of the School of Life Sciences from 2011-2019. In 2014 his research on fire ecology with Prof Bennett was one of three finalists for a Eureka Prize in Environmental Research. In 2023 he was elected as a Fellow of Birdlife Australia, the highest award available in the discipline, for distinguished service to ornithology. He recently completed a three-year term as a member of the Board of Directors for Parks Victoria. He remains actively involved in ensuring conservation policy is based on the best available evidence.