I have spent the last month reeling from the loss of a man who has always been one of my greatest scientific heros and influences, someone whose work on optics and visual ecology has always been a shining beacon to which I aspire. I have enjoyed reading all of Mike's wonderful papers, many several times (often simply to revel in the enthusiasm and joy with which Mike wrote, or to once again find that occasional hidden joke :-) ). My old photocopy of his amazing 1981 Handbook of Sensory Physiology review on the optics of invertebrate eyes is easily my most trashed and scribbled-on reprint (and now somewhat of a personal treasure). Unlike many who have written their tributes before me, it was not until well into my career that I first met Mike and Rosemary. I truly lament that they left Canberra a year before I arrived to do my PhD – I too would have loved to have played squash with Mike and to have spent long periods chatting. But despite that unfortunate twist of fate, and the separation of time and distance that ensued, Mike has always been a ready source of kindness, encouragement and advice during my own work on compound eyes and dim-light vision, and he and Rosemary have always been gracious and charming hosts on those (sadly) few occasions when I visited Sussex. Even though Mike has left us, the elegance and brilliance of his work remains and will continue to inspire the next generation of youngsters embarking on a career in comparative vision, just as it did (and still does) for me. That at least is a small comfort. I will miss you Mike…. Eric