Conservationist · Author · Field Experience in Malawi

Ian Bartlett

The man behind Mpatamanga Wildlife Ranch

Ian Bartlett is a conservationist and author whose life has been shaped by Africa’s rivers, indigenous woodland, wildlife and the communities living alongside them.

For more than twenty years, he worked to protect Mpatamanga Wildlife Ranch in southern Malawi—preserving natural habitat while confronting fire, illegal logging, charcoal production and poaching.

A Life Shaped by Africa

Born in Ndola, Zambia and raised in Central Africa, Ian developed a lifelong connection with the African bush.

His working life included approximately ten years as a licensed problem-animal crocodile hunter in Malawi. Operating under permits issued by the Department of National Parks and Wildlife, he dealt with dangerous Nile crocodiles responsible for attacks on people and livestock around rural waterways.

Another major part of his life unfolded at Mpatamanga, where a rugged piece of bush near the Shire River became a long-term responsibility to protect indigenous woodland and the wildlife that depended upon it.

A working life rooted in Africa

Twenty Years at Mpatamanga

Mpatamanga was never a large international conservation organisation. The work continued through persistence—patrol after patrol, fire season after fire season—with local scouts and caretakers helping to protect a landscape that remained deliberately rugged and largely undeveloped.

Ian with members of the Mpatamanga field team

Practical protection on the ground

Two True Stories from a Life in Africa

Ian’s books preserve first-hand accounts of conservation, dangerous wildlife and the realities of life in remote parts of Malawi.

MPATAMANGA

The human story behind protecting a remote piece of African wilderness—the people, wildlife, fires, thieves, poachers, setbacks and moments of humour that became part of everyday life at Mpatamanga.

Conservation Memoir

Wildlife Memoir

Memoirs of a Real Crocodile Hunter

Ian’s account of approximately ten years of licensed problem-animal crocodile control in Malawi and the communities living alongside one of Africa’s most feared predators.

Mpatamanga

A Landscape Worth Remembering

Ian continues to write about his experiences in Africa and the conservation work that has shaped his life. His aim is to document a disappearing wilderness and encourage others to value the natural heritage that survives.

A first-hand record of Malawi’s wilderness

• Born: Ndola, Zambia

• Raised: Southern Africa, Malawi

• Now Based: London, United Kingdom

Conservation in Practice

Conservation involved monitoring the property, managing fire risk, discouraging illegal logging, and protecting natural habitat with limited resources.

🌲 More Than Half a Million Indigenous Trees

A later forest inventory estimated approximately 519,180 indigenous trees, representing dozens of indigenous species within the surveyed area.

“Conserving Mpatamanga became less about owning a piece of land and more about accepting responsibility for what survived upon it.”