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Alexander Lees

@alexanderlees.bsky.social
5.3K followers 1.6K following 1.7K posts

Birds, biodiversity science, natural history, politics. Professor Man Met Uni, Associate Cornell Lab of #Ornithology, Chair BOURC, Trustee @bou.org.uk SC @ras-network.bsky.social. Usually found in the #PeakDistrict or #Amazonia, he/him. Views own.

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Alexander Lees @alexanderlees.bsky.social · 2h
Really interesting study - we now know that Ptarmigan in Scandinavia* routinely make long-distance movements - www.frontiersin.org/journals/eco... #Ornithology *as well as elsewhere e.g. North America.
frontiersin.org
Frontiers | Survival and Migration of Rock Ptarmigan in Central Scandinavia
In a world undergoing massive declines in the distribution and abundance of many wildlife species, documenting basic ecological characteristics is often need...
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British Ornithologists’ Union (BOU) @bou.org.uk · 5h
📢 APPLICATIONS ARE NOW OPEN... ...for the 2027 BOU Summer Placement Scheme Financially supporting undergraduate students to carry out summer #ornithology research placements Application deadline: 29 January 2027 Guidelines & application form: bou.org.uk/funding/s... 🪶
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Hugh Harrop @hughharrop.bsky.social · 6h
Over the moon (to put it mildly) to find this first year male SIBERIAN BLUE ROBIN in our garden at Hillwell, Shetland this morning. The fifth record for Britain and a first for Shetland. #BirdingScotland #UKbirding #RareBirdsUK #Birds #UKWildlife
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Graham Appleton @wadertales.bsky.social · 12h
Woodcock shooting season starts today in most of the UK (Scotland was 1 Sep). Continental birds have not arrived yet so any shot birds will be red-listed British breeders. GWCT suggests waiting until 1 December before targeting Woodcock. More here: wadertales.wordpress.com/2015/10/26/c... #birds
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Lyn Heideman @heidelyn.bsky.social · 19h
The Roadless Rule protects 45M acres of pristine forests and waters—and their wild inhabitants—from destructive roads and logging. Trump wants to rescind the rule, claiming roads are needed to prevent fires. The truth? Fires are 4x more likely to start near a road than in roadless forests. And...
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Botanical University Challenge @bucbotany.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
🌱🌾🌍🌺🍄🌳🌲🌿🍃🖌🐡Wildlife now on tunnelling spoil from HS2, become scarce nutrient-poor chalk grassland not previous high quality agricultural land. Includes knapweed, wild carrot, lady's bedstraw, pyramidal orchid - and insects & birds that need these plants. #BUC2026 www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...
Screenshot chalk grassland illustrating using tunnelling spoil for HS2 to make scarce nutrient-poor chalk grassland rather than restoring previous high quality agricultural land.
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Andy McKay @korimakoecology.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Wolves did not save Yellowstone – why were we so desperate to believe they did? 🌏 🧪
theconversation.com
Wolves did not save Yellowstone – why were we so desperate to believe they did?
Yellowstone’s reintroduced wolves have become a famous conservation success story, but the reality is far messier.
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Philip Amies @philipamies.eurosky.social · 30/09/2026
Turner recorded White Herons In Britain in the 1500s which were the same size and shape as Grey Herons, he also recorded that the white birds were rare and that they sometimes hybridised with Grey Herons which Conrad Gesner mentions as hybrids were challenging intellectually.
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Fair Isle Bird Observatory @fairislebirdobs.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
A change in the wind bought in plenty of scarcities across the isle, including Red-flanked Bluetail and 31 Yellow-browed Warbler, topped off by an EYEBROWED THRUSH at Guidicum. Read more at www.fairislebirdobs.co.uk/latest_sight... 📸 A Penn
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João Menezes @jocateme.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Our new paper on bird vocal amplitude is out in @sse-evolution.bsky.social ! Across 123 species, we found two new contenders for world’s loudest bird: bare-throated bellbird and seriema Along with the white bellbird, both can reach jackhammer-level amplitudes! doi.org/10.1093/evolut/qpag153
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Dr Alex Bond @thelabandfield.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Our next step in this project is a bibliography of avian type publications. It's incomplete, but 1120+ refs to 210+ collections is a good starting point! Searchable by institution, country, city. albnd.github.io/bird_types/ #Ornithology #Taxonomy
albnd.github.io
Bird Type Specimen Bibliography — Directory of Collections
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Raptor Persecution UK @raptorpersuk.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Red Kite dies after being found with gunshot injuries in Peak District National Park. Police appeal for information + commentary from me ⬇️ #RaptorResearch #WildlifeCrime raptorpersecutionuk.org/2026/09/28/r...
raptorpersecutionuk.org
Red Kite dies after being found with gunshot injuries in Peak District National Park – Police appeal for information
Derbyshire Constabulary has issued an appeal for information (27 September 2026) following the discovery of a shot Red Kite in the Peak District National Park on or before 7th July 2026. RURAL CRIM…
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Cellular Tracking Technologies @celltracktech.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
A Northern Waterthrush tagged in Cape May, NJ left after sunset on Sep 11. Two weeks later it was over Colombia! Jamaica -> Colombia included ~800 km of open Caribbean. 3,082 km so far! @birdscanada.bsky.social @originalstu.bsky.social #MotusWTS #BirdMigration #ornithology @nature.org
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George Monbiot @georgemonbiot.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
It's not just that we had two wasted years under Keir Starmer - years in which, with a vast majority and quite a lot of goodwill - he could have turned this country around. On crucial issues, we had two years of spiralling backwards, towards a very dark place. 🧵 www.theguardian.com/politics/202...
theguardian.com
Ed Miliband to acknowledge Labour’s former stance on Palestine fell short
Foreign secretary will tell party’s conference ‘we are not here to accept the status quo but to change it’
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David Ho @davidho.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
The techbros don't want you to see this trailer. Pass it on.
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Andrés Cuervo @amcuervo.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
What a study! congrats all authors, especially the incredible Liliana Dávalos #bats #cienciacriolla @labdavalos.bsky.social
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Alexander Lees @alexanderlees.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
I was today years old when I learned there were still glaciers in Papua, although not for much longer it seems... 🌏 www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
bbc.co.uk
Indonesia Carstensz Pyramid: Papua's 'eternal snow' on Puncak Jaya is about to disappear forever
Climate change is transforming Papua's snowy peaks, which hold scientific value and spiritual significance.
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Alexander Lees @alexanderlees.bsky.social · 26/09/2026
When you can't even pay for "free speech"
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Colin Carlson @colincarlson.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
David Quammen's essay in The New York Times today closes with this paragraph. It's both a scientific falsehood, and an incredibly dangerous narrative. If you're willing to give me five minutes of your time, I'd like to explain why.
The Ebola virus doesn’t need to spill back. It abides in its reservoir host, and awaits its next opportunity. A virus can’t climb out of a bat or a monkey and fly off in search of human prey. It can only spill over. If humans left the reservoir host alone — not hunting it, not capturing it, not eating it, not exporting it live, not disturbing its forest habitat — the virus wouldn’t re-emerge in humans. It would remain where it is, harming no one. But of course that’s not what happens. And when viruses spill, they often spill into us, because the human population is such a big, busy target.
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Alexander Lees @alexanderlees.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
"Extrapolation to the European redwing population suggests that tens of millions of infected ticks may be transported southward each autumn."
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Dr Vanessa @hpsvanessa.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Cannot tell you how much I hate this & how ashamed & angry I am that @ukri.org have taken this step. We KNOW this sort of gAI is socially biased, we KNOW it favours slopAI output over human-written. Our research landscape is falling apart due to underfunding, & they do this? it's *appalling*
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Mr and Mrs Trellis @thenorfolkcoast.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
Why is the UK’s suppressed climate national security report significant? www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
Why is the UK’s suppressed climate national security report significant?
Warnings about the catastrophic effects of vital ecosystems collapsing were not published under previous prime minister
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Alexander Lees @alexanderlees.bsky.social · 25/09/2026
#WinnersOfTheAnthropocene
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West Coast Birdwatching @westcoastbirds.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
HELP NEEDED! There is a stranded Manx Shearwater in the West Midlands (SOLIHULL) that needs a ride back to the coast. Can anyone in that area help? Even to take it some of the way and pass on to another volunteer? Please call 01437 723193 if you can help 🙏
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Corey Callaghan @coreytcallaghan.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Do you use #iNaturalist data in research—or advise students who do? We put together a practical guide to using iNaturalist data in scientific research, covering how to access, acquire, analyze, and attribute the data, with examples in R and Python. Paper: doi.org/10.1093/bios... #ecology
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Richard K Broughton @richardkbroughton.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
New paper showing dynamic nature of old-growth European primeval forest. Not a static 'museum' of closed-canopy trees, as often assumed, there's constant churn of natural disturbance gaps that emerge and fill, shifting niches for bird communities. doi.org/10.1111/1365...
doi.org
The impact of natural disturbances on bird assemblages in Białowieża Primeval Forest disappears within 35–45 years
Our results indicate that some of the effects of natural disturbance events in primeval forest ecosystems may disappear faster than previously thought. This study highlights the resilience of the Bia...
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Alexander Lees @alexanderlees.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
Waiting for the eBird checklists to come through (nod to @nomadbirder.bsky.social) but amazing how much pelagic data is now accumulating... look at the map of Cory's Shearwater (Calonectris borealis) #Ornithology #UKBirding
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Alexander Lees @alexanderlees.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Full haul from the Challenger Expedition #UKBirding
White-faced Storm Petrel- one from Challenger 1 expedition to continental shelf; also Madeiran Storm Petrel (19 September), 3 Barolo-type shearwaters (19, 20 and 21 September), South Polar Skua (19 September), Desertas-type petrel (19 September), 1+ Scopoli's Shearwater (19 September), 102 Wilson's Storm Petrels, 14 Grey Phalaropes, 8 Long-tailed Skuas, 3 Leach's Storm Petrels, 707 Great Shearwaters, 1,457 Cory's Shearwaters, 15 Pomarine Skuas, 63 Sooty Shearwaters, 191 European Storm Petrels and 2 European Turtle Doves (!), plus Leatherback Turtle, Northern Bottlenose Whale, 3+ Fin Whales, Risso's Dolphin, 10 Blue Sharks, swordfish sp and 3 Ocean Sunfish, all between 17-23 September
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Alexander Lees @alexanderlees.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
So this is gripping.... Difficult to know at this point how this haul relates to exceptional sea temperatures vs a poorly-inventoried deepwater region #UKBirding
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Lyn Heideman @heidelyn.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Trump's pick to head the U.S. Forest Service, Tom Schulz is the first Forest Service chief in history appointed without any prior work experience inside the agency. His experience? He was an executive and lobbyist for the lumber and timber industry: www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026.... 🌎
theguardian.com
Forest Service chief faces scrutiny over logging ties as Trump plans to scrap protections
Rollback of ‘roadless rule’ expected to benefit companies US Forest Service chief, Tom Schultz, previously lobbied for
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Alexander Lees @alexanderlees.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
A good #UKBirding rarity search-image macaulaylibrary.org/asset/665449...
macaulaylibrary.org
ML665449105 - Middendorff's Grasshopper Warbler - Macaulay Library
Macaulay Library ML665449105; © Hong Yuanhai; Ishigaki, Okinawa, Japan
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RSPB Science @rspbscience.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
New job alert 🪶🧪 We are hiring a Conservation Scientist to work on links between hydrological restoration and Lesser Spotted Woodpecker conservation Deadline: 7/10/26 Apply here: app.vacancy-filler.co.uk/salescrm/Car... #SpeciesRecoveryProgramme @naturalengland.bsky.social 📷Ben Andrew
A Lesser Spotted Woodpecker perched by its nest hole
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Alexander Lees @alexanderlees.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
There is also a significant human cost to managing moorland fueload by burning it (along with diverse environmental costs) iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1... 🌍
Screenshot of paper entitled: Prescribed moorland burning in Great Britain exposes 2.3 million people to PM2.5 levels exceeding the WHO 24 h guideline limit
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Botanical Society of Britain and Ireland (BSBI) @bsbibotany.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Dr Stuart Desjardins, current Editor-in-Chief of #BritishandIrishBotany is looking to stand down at the end of 2026. The search is on to find a successor: could that be you? There will be lots of support on offer: bsbi.org/blog/2026/09... Details of the role & how to apply: bsbi.org/about/people...
bsbi.org
Changing of the guard at British & Irish Botany
The BSBI is for everyone who cares about the wild plants of Britain and Ireland.
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Luke Ontario @coolhand.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Oh my God, I agree with WSJ opinion Oh my God, shoot me in the face
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL.
OPINION COMMENTARY (U.S.)
The Hidden Agenda Behind the Al Panic
A mathematical model doesn't rebel.
Anthropomorphizing it helps obscure human errors and accountability.
By Gabriele Mazzini
September 21, 2026, 5:43 pm EDT
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Francisco Blaha @franciscoblaha.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Feral cats have many consequences www.rnz.co.nz/news/environ...
rnz.co.nz
Dolphin found dead on Invercargill beach died from toxoplasmosis
A pregnant Hector's dolphin found dead on an Invercargill beach died from toxoplasmosis.
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Tom Lowe @saloplarus.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Magical morning on the Wirral with 36 Leach's Storm-petrels heading west into the wind, some more offshore than others 😍 #seawatching #superseabirdSunday
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Adrift Lab (Marine Science) @adriftlab.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Exposure to #plastic is increasing rapidly, but few consequences have been described in detail. Does this mean we’re worrying about nothing? Nope! Our #NewPaper highlights the bio-mechanical consequences of #PlasticIngestion on the stomach. www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
sciencedirect.com
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Jente Ottenburghs | Avian Hybrids @jenteo.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Your daily Avian Hybrids story! Genetic coupling of barrier loci in the Barn Swallow avianhybrids.wordpress.com/2025/04/02/g... #ornithology
avianhybrids.wordpress.com
Genetic coupling of barrier loci in the Barn Swallow
Strong sexual selection culminates in reproductive isolation.
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Jacob Öberg @profjacob.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
🚨🚨 Social media venues such as #facebook and #instagram's algorithms have been designed by #meta to filter out 'social topic' such as #civilrights and #feminism. #Freespeech my ass. www.theguardian.com/technology/2...
theguardian.com
Meta bans ads for Virginia Woolf play in Spain because they relate to feminism
Theatre told that Facebook and Instagram filter out ads mentioning ‘social topics’ such as civil rights or feminism
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Alexander Lees @alexanderlees.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
This.
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Catherine Rampell @crampell.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
It really is striking how many authoritarian states have ended up in this exact same place, where the leader seizes control of scientific inquiry. Lysenkoism in the Soviet Union, Aryan Physics in the Third Reich, Great Leap Forward (also related to Lysenko) in China.
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Andy Stockhausen @andy-1963.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Wow! P Hall's image of Red-billed Tropicbird off Porthgwarra this morning #ukbirding
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Hoodlum 🇺🇸 @nothoodlum.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Obama: “Imagine if I had pulled Fox News’ credentials from the White House press corps. You’re laughing, but this is what’s happening. It’s unimaginable that the same parties that are silent right now would have tolerated behavior like that from me.” Clip courtesy @meidastouch.com
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The New York Times @nytimes.com · 19/09/2026
Journalists from CNN, MS NOW and Politico were denied entry to the White House on Saturday. First Amendment experts condemned President Trump’s ban on the news outlets as unconstitutional. www.nytimes.com/live/2026/09...
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Tim Stephens @proftimstephens.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
“Activist groups are using artificial intelligence to target the ABC’s coverage of the Middle East with accusations of bias.” AI is making society ungovernable. #auspol www.smh.com.au/business/com...
smh.com.au
Activist group using AI to flood ABC with thousands of bias complaints
The AI system lets campaigners deliver thousands of messages from their supporters with different language, tone and length but the same meaning.
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Daryll Marie @daryllmarie.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Red-breasted! Nuthatch! On a! Boat! 🌿🪶
A red-breasted nuthatch clings to some pink line
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Dr Andrew Mahon @andyantarctica.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
"NSF’s budget, adjusted for inflation, is essentially the same as it was 20 years ago, and Tr*** wants to cut it by half next year." not ONE BIT of this is realistically feasible and it is terrifying for the future of science in the U.S. 🧪🌎🌊
science.org
NSF memo implementing Trump’s ‘golden age’ of science unsettles researchers
New document emphasizes support for White House priorities over curiosity-driven ideas
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Journal of Avian Biology @avianbiology.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
New paper: what shapes diversification across the Andean foothills? In the white-tipped sicklebill, repeated isolation and reconnection appear to have contributed to population divergence. ➡️ vist.ly/5iyqa #ornithology #birds #climate
Journal of Avian Biology issue 3 cover showing a white-tipped sicklebill, Eutoxeres aquila. Photo: Paula Carrera LevyFig. 2 from the article: Phylogeography of Eutoxeres aquila: (A) geographic distribution of samples included in genetic analyses; (B) Bayesian phylogenetic tree based on the concatenated dataset of ND2 and cytb; and (C) median-joining haplotype networks based on ND2 and cytb sequences.Fig. 6 from the article: Resistance surface for Eutoxeres aquila derived from climatic and topographic data.
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Hisham Zerriffi @hishamzerriffi.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
““AI allows you to get to a bad idea faster,” one of the sources said.” Bad enough if it is a student writing a term paper. Much worse when it is a military “analyst” who impacts targeting. Also, querying a chatbot does not an analyst make.
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