Ron Magill

Ronald Magill (born February 28, 1960) is an American wildlife photographer and the communications director of the Miami-Dade Zoological Park and Gardens. Magill also makes regular television appearances across local South Florida networks and has won five Emmy Awards for his work on the nature documentary programs; Dreams of Alaska, The Amazon & Beyond, "Alligator Love," and Dreams of the Rain Forest.

Magill was born in New York City, New York, but moved to Perrine, Florida at the age of 12, where he later attended Miami Palmetto High School and obtained an associate's degree at the University of Florida. His first job was working at the Miami Serpentarium, which no longer exists. In 1980, he became a zookeeper at Miami MetroZoo and gradually became lead zookeeper, senior zookeeper and then assistant curator.

Today, Magill remains at the renamed Miami-Dade Zoological Park and Gardens, as its communications director and makes appearances on television shows such as Good Morning America, and The Today Show. He appeared for over 25 years on the iconic Spanish variety program Sábado Gigante until the show ended its over 50-year run in 2015. He has a regular segment on The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz, where listeners can call in and ask him questions, often humorous or irreverent. He has also appeared on several documentaries for the Discovery Channel and the History Channel, and, during the 1980s, handled many of the animals used on the Miami Vice television series.

In 2006, Magill received the Wildlife Ambassador Award in recognition of his efforts on wildlife preservation. Magill was the founder for the Cheetah Ambassador Program at Zoo Miami. Magill is also a Nikon Ambassador.