Edgar Fraser Stead (22 October 1881 – 7 February 1949) was a New Zealand ornithologist, engineer, horticulturist and marksman. He was born in Christchurch and educated there at Christ's College and Wanganui Collegiate School. He then studied electrical engineering at Canterbury College, followed by three years at Schenectady, New York, at the research laboratories of the General Electric Company.