Ajay Tegala


Ajay Haywood Tegala is an English wildlife conservationist, presenter and author. He is known for his work as a National Trust ranger on Wicken Fen, Cambridgeshire and Blakeney Point, Norfolk.

Early life

Ajay was born in Chertsey, Surrey to scientist Beverley and teacher TT. He grew up in Market Deeping, Lincolnshire. Ajay attended the Deepings School. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Conservation and Countryside Management from Nottingham Trent University in 2011. He received the 2021 Outstanding Alumni Award from his alma mater.

Career

At the age of fifteen, Ajay volunteered with the National Trust on Wicken Fen National Nature Reserve, inspiring him to pursue a career in nature conservation. During his degree, he did a work placement on Blakeney Point. After graduating and a seasonal stint on Lindisfarne, he returned to both locations as a ranger. He secured the position on Blakeney Point in 2013, which he held until relocating to Wicken Fen in 2018.
Ajay presented the 2020 BBC science documentary Inside the Bat Cave alongside Lucy Cooke.
In 2021, he joined the team of the BBC Two programme Springwatch. This included creating and presenting a short film about the common crane in East Anglia for the programme. His debut book The Unique Life of a Ranger: Seasons of Change on Blakeney Point was published in 2022, which recounts his experiences as a coastal ranger.
Ajay collaborated with writer and broadcaster Zoë Howe on a project titled Witching the Wild Year. Themed around nature, folklore and the changing seasons, Witching the Wild Year began as a live show touring theatres and art centres around England in 2024. Also in 2024, Tegala's second book Wetland Diaries: Ranger Life and Rewilding on Wicken Fen, about his experiences as a fenland ranger, was published. Wetland Diaries was a Rewilding Britain pick for World Book Day 2025. In 2024, Ajay became an ambassador for both Birda and Green Jobs for Nature and also for Butterfly Conservation the following year.
In 2025, Ajay began co-hosting the National Trust's nature podcast Wild Tales with ranger Rosie Holdsworth. Wild Tales became FeedSpot's #1 UK outdoor podcast of 2025 and won silver for the Changemaker Award at Audio UK's Audio Production Awards. Ajay was awarded the Freedom of the Parish of Deeping St James in April 2025.
Ajay and Zoë Howe are currently developing Witching the Wild Year into a book, to be published by The History Press in 2027.

Books

  • The Unique Life of a Ranger: Seasons of Change on Blakeney Point
  • ''Wetland Diaries: Ranger Life and Rewilding on Wicken Fen''