Alexander Lees

@alexanderlees.bsky.social

5178 Followers 1553 Following

Birds, science, politics. Reader 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.

Tweet by Ian Bennell @ianbennell75 - before and after (AI enhanced) photo of a vagrant Long-tailed Shrike caption: "For those who say you shouldn’t be AI’ing your photos here’s the original as I took it and here’s after AI. Sometimes it’s nice to make your photos better. Don’t worry you’ll still be getting the unedited slop in the future but for a bird as good as this I think it’s worth it.
Bleaklow, Derbyshire
Video of the fire that has stopped in the Crowden valley
Voucher images of a newly described lizard
Manipulated Epaulet image which ended up looking like a Red-winged Blackbird
2026 image
Nonsense news story in the Daily Mail
Jacob's Ladder (Polemonium caeruleum)
Extent of Tintwistle Moor fire
Wildfire on Tintwistle Low Moor
Fire on Tintwistle Moor
Departure board at Manchester Picadilly Station
Osprey flying over Tintwistle Low Moor (pylons in the screenshot) as viewed from Brosscroft.
Where can I have a BBQ in the Peak District? There is currently no provision for having a BBQ anywhere in the open countryside of the Peak District. In some areas, these restrictions may be covered by Public Space Protection Orders (PSPOs) with fines of up to £1,000 applied. Rangers, volunteers or the fire service often attend or patrol popular areas and may use equipment such as heat-sensing cameras and scopes to assess risk. Please do not increase the risk to you, wildlife and what may be private property by having a BBQ or using any form of open fire. BBQs are not permitted in the open countryside of the Peak District National Park Barbecues, disposable barbecues or any form of open fire and flame are not permitted in the open countryside anywhere in the Peak District (including National Park Authority properties and estates). This position is shared by all major landowners in the area. Any use of these items within a private location such as a campsite requires the permission of the landowner.
W5. What is the evidence for indirect effects of SF on bird species via ecological interactions with species whose abundance, distribution, or behaviour has changed due to SF as typically conducted in residential settings? Rationale The aim of this question is to summarise the available evidence relating to interactions between wild bird species that have benefitted from SF in UK residential settings and other species of wild birds. Some beneficiaries of SF have increased in abundance or experienced changes in distribution or behaviour, and this may increase the likelihood of interactions with other species including species that do not routinely take SF in residential settings. While such interactions could be beneficial for one or both interacting species, they might also entail negative impacts for one or other party. Several recent UK studies have highlighted the potential for negative interactions, such as increased competition or predation pressure from SF beneficiary species (e.g. Shutt & Lees 2021, Broughton et al. 2022). The aim of this question is to summarise the evidence and potential for such interactions with a particular focus on UK wild bird species.
BBC Breakfast covers our study
Empty Black-headed Gullery at Woodhead Res.
Chapter in new Birds of Fair Isle book
Figure 1. Hypothesised drivers and movements of Nearctic landbirds associated with the passage of Hurricane Lee in autumn 2023. NAO, North Atlantic Oscillation. Image credits: Eastern Spruce Budworm (Choristoneura fumiferana) used with permission from Lucas Benaiche, wildfires and solar eruption by Gerd Altmann/geralt (Pixabay), Blackpoll Warbler (Setophaga striata) by Lucas Lombardo, Wilson’s Warbler (Cardellina pusilla) by Ian Davies, and Magnolia Warbler (Setophaga magnolia) by Sam Viles.
screengrab from the survey
Main foraging areas (75% AKDE) of male Goshawks foraging exclusively in forest (A), in forest and farmland (B), and in forest and town (C). Foraging areas of individual birds are indicated by different colours. The town of Hajnówka is shown in grey. White dots indicate known active Goshawk nests.
The US strike on an Iranian warship, which killed more than 80 crew members, is illegal, according to Wes Bryant, a former U.S. Air Force Special Operations targeting expert and former chief of civilian harm assessments at the Pentagon. The Iris Dena, a warship displacing around 1,500 tonnes bearing Iranian missiles, was reportedly transiting home after participating in training exercises hosted by the Indian navy at the time of the strike, according to Indian press. India had convened naval assets from 74 countries for a March exercise. “Was that warship actively posing a threat or participating in hostiles?” asked Bryant. “You cannot say that this warship was an imminent threat to anyone. By targeting it, is the Trump administration saying that the imminent threat is all of Iran’s government and military?” “If so, that’s an incredibly dangerous example of military overreach,” Bryant said. Bigger picture, lawyers have said that the US operations against Iran are patently illegal, and several have raised concerns about the broader conflict that US aggression has kicked off. “I’m holding Trump responsible, not just for US military strikes, but for the foreseeable consequences of launching these attacks,” said Brian Finucane, a former state department lawyer. “It was not only foreseeable, but it was also widely predicted that Iran would respond… That’s why aggression is a crime under international law. ”
Effects of garden feeder use on population change. a Change in feeder use (proportion of gardens where species used feeders) by 39 species between 1973 and 2012. b The relationship between the change in feeder use and species national population change over the same timeframe with 95% confidence limits (n = 31 species). Colours, carried over from panel a, depict significance of food use changes. c Box plot for the difference in urban population trends for species that do (n = 33) or do not (n = 39) use garden bird feeders. Boxes bound the interquartile range (IQR) divided by the median, whiskers extend to 1.5 × IQR beyond the boxes and orange dots indicate group means