Rupert Wilkey

Rupert Wilkey was born in England but grew up in Kenya as a small boy. In 1975 his family moved to Malawi, where he would spend the next thirteen years of his life.

Rupert wrote his first book A Checklist for African Snakes Vol. I (Adders & Vipers) in 2002. Since then has published over twenty books on a range of subjects, from herpetology and business to historical accounts and biographies.

Snakes of Malawi, first published in 2014, is the most comprehensive work on Malawi’s snake species since 1962. Other works include Snakes of Spain and Snakes of Bulgaria. He contributed the snake section to Reptiles of Malawi written by Gary Brown in 2019.

2020 was a busy year for Rupert, with the publication of:

A Fish Eagle Calls, an account of his 13 years living in Malawi. 


The Khonde series of books, including Stories from my Khonde and More stories from my Khonde.


There is a lake called Nyassa - Part One, a short biography of the men who played a part in Malawi's early history from David Livingstone to Henry Henderson.


There is a lake called Nyassa - Part Two, a short biography of the men who played a part in Malawi's early history from John Buchanan to the Rev. Dr James Stewart.