Alexander Lees
@alexanderlees.bsky.social
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.
Reposted by Alexander Lees
1/ The US Government has quietly removed a memorial to Black soldiers who died in World War II from the Netherlands American Cemetery in Margraten, South Limburg. The move follows a complaint from the right-wing Heritage Foundation to the American Battle Monuments Commission. ⬇️
November 9, 2025 at 9:23 AM
1/ The US Government has quietly removed a memorial to Black soldiers who died in World War II from the Netherlands American Cemetery in Margraten, South Limburg. The move follows a complaint from the right-wing Heritage Foundation to the American Battle Monuments Commission. ⬇️
Reposted by Alexander Lees
The recent sighting of a calf of the world's rarest cetacean – Vaquita – has provided a glimmer of hope for the Critically Endangered species:
Calf sighting offers glimmer of hope for world's rarest cetacean
A calf of the Critically Endangered Vaquita been confirmed in the wild following extensive surveys in the Upper Gulf of California during 2025. With an estimated total population of only a handful of individuals, this discovery signals that the species is still reproducing, offering a rare glimmer of hope. Conservation groups urge immediate action to enforce gill-net bans and secure the lifeline this tiny porpoise still holds.
bit.ly
November 10, 2025 at 7:17 AM
The recent sighting of a calf of the world's rarest cetacean – Vaquita – has provided a glimmer of hope for the Critically Endangered species:
Reposted by Alexander Lees
Our paper on tinamou evolution is finally out in @systbiol.bsky.social. academic.oup.com/sysbio/advan...
November 9, 2025 at 4:26 AM
Our paper on tinamou evolution is finally out in @systbiol.bsky.social. academic.oup.com/sysbio/advan...
Reposted by Alexander Lees
Worrying increase in bird flu in wild birds in Spain, Cranes in particular are affected. Spain has huge numbers of Cranes in winter, forming large concentrations. Already dead birds are being found. 🪶
@iancarter67.bsky.social @alexanderlees.bsky.social @markavery.bsky.social seo.org/actualizamos...
@iancarter67.bsky.social @alexanderlees.bsky.social @markavery.bsky.social seo.org/actualizamos...
November 10, 2025 at 8:33 AM
Worrying increase in bird flu in wild birds in Spain, Cranes in particular are affected. Spain has huge numbers of Cranes in winter, forming large concentrations. Already dead birds are being found. 🪶
@iancarter67.bsky.social @alexanderlees.bsky.social @markavery.bsky.social seo.org/actualizamos...
@iancarter67.bsky.social @alexanderlees.bsky.social @markavery.bsky.social seo.org/actualizamos...
Reposted by Alexander Lees
France Spain and Kenya are aiming for a luxury flight tax at #COP30 💪
High time - untaxed private jets should not exist.
www.france24.com/en/live-news...
High time - untaxed private jets should not exist.
www.france24.com/en/live-news...
At COP30, nations target the jet set with luxury flight tax
France, Spain and Kenya are among a group of countries spearheading a drive at the COP30 climate summit for a new tax on luxury air travel, a source close to the matter told AFP.
www.france24.com
November 8, 2025 at 12:35 PM
France Spain and Kenya are aiming for a luxury flight tax at #COP30 💪
High time - untaxed private jets should not exist.
www.france24.com/en/live-news...
High time - untaxed private jets should not exist.
www.france24.com/en/live-news...
Reposted by Alexander Lees
✈️ On my way to Shanghai! Excited to work with the Chinese Academy of Sciences — giving lectures and developing new collaborative studies. Then to the 2nd International Symposium on Swan Conservation, sharing our latest results and connecting researchers across the East Asian–Australasian Flyway
November 8, 2025 at 12:41 PM
✈️ On my way to Shanghai! Excited to work with the Chinese Academy of Sciences — giving lectures and developing new collaborative studies. Then to the 2nd International Symposium on Swan Conservation, sharing our latest results and connecting researchers across the East Asian–Australasian Flyway
Reposted by Alexander Lees
One analytical model shows that, as of November 5th, the dismantling of U.S.A.I.D. has already caused the deaths of 600,000 people, two-thirds of them children. https://newyorkermag.visitlink.me/jUzNSc
The Shutdown of U.S.A.I.D. Has Already Killed Hundreds of Thousands
The short documentary “Rovina’s Choice” tells the story of what goes when aid goes.
newyorkermag.visitlink.me
November 6, 2025 at 9:00 PM
One analytical model shows that, as of November 5th, the dismantling of U.S.A.I.D. has already caused the deaths of 600,000 people, two-thirds of them children. https://newyorkermag.visitlink.me/jUzNSc
Reposted by Alexander Lees
Are you an #ECR working with #birds and looking to put your critical writing skills to use? Consider joining our team at ‘Avian Conservation & Ecology’ as a Subject Editor ace-eco.org/our-editors/
Avian Conservation and Ecology: Our Editors
ace-eco.org
November 8, 2025 at 4:53 AM
Are you an #ECR working with #birds and looking to put your critical writing skills to use? Consider joining our team at ‘Avian Conservation & Ecology’ as a Subject Editor ace-eco.org/our-editors/
Reposted by Alexander Lees
Oops. Ooooooooooooops.
I do hope that nobody has been given or denied a job/promotion based on their SpringerNature citation counts in the past 15 years.
arxiv.org/pdf/2511.01675
h/t @nathlarigaldie.bsky.social
I do hope that nobody has been given or denied a job/promotion based on their SpringerNature citation counts in the past 15 years.
arxiv.org/pdf/2511.01675
h/t @nathlarigaldie.bsky.social
November 7, 2025 at 2:02 PM
Oops. Ooooooooooooops.
I do hope that nobody has been given or denied a job/promotion based on their SpringerNature citation counts in the past 15 years.
arxiv.org/pdf/2511.01675
h/t @nathlarigaldie.bsky.social
I do hope that nobody has been given or denied a job/promotion based on their SpringerNature citation counts in the past 15 years.
arxiv.org/pdf/2511.01675
h/t @nathlarigaldie.bsky.social
Reposted by Alexander Lees
🦅🌱Secondary seed dispersal by migrant harriers in India
📷 © Sankar Subramanian
vist.ly/4cfkr
#Diploendozoochory #Grasslands #OpenNaturalEcosystems #Raptor
📷 © Sankar Subramanian
vist.ly/4cfkr
#Diploendozoochory #Grasslands #OpenNaturalEcosystems #Raptor
October 31, 2025 at 6:06 PM
🦅🌱Secondary seed dispersal by migrant harriers in India
📷 © Sankar Subramanian
vist.ly/4cfkr
#Diploendozoochory #Grasslands #OpenNaturalEcosystems #Raptor
📷 © Sankar Subramanian
vist.ly/4cfkr
#Diploendozoochory #Grasslands #OpenNaturalEcosystems #Raptor
Reposted by Alexander Lees
Although we're not where we should be, we're on a significantly better trajectory than we were 10 years ago.
10 Years After the Paris Climate Agreement, Here's Where We Are (Gift Article)
Has anything really changed in the decade since the Paris Agreement was reached? Actually, quite a lot.
www.nytimes.com
November 7, 2025 at 6:13 PM
Although we're not where we should be, we're on a significantly better trajectory than we were 10 years ago.
Reposted by Alexander Lees
"The Hague’s fossil-fuel advertising ban is more than a policy- it’s a signal. By rejecting the normalization of fossil fuel promotion, the decision to implement a ban locally can challenge entrenched norms globally... FF advertising bans present a compelling opportunity for governments to act"
Local fossil fuel ad ban as a catalyst for global change - Nature Climate Change
The Hague in the Netherlands was the first city in the world to enact a law prohibiting advertisements for fossil fuel products and services. Although the ban is restricted to The Hague’s jurisdiction...
www.nature.com
November 8, 2025 at 7:52 AM
"The Hague’s fossil-fuel advertising ban is more than a policy- it’s a signal. By rejecting the normalization of fossil fuel promotion, the decision to implement a ban locally can challenge entrenched norms globally... FF advertising bans present a compelling opportunity for governments to act"
Reposted by Alexander Lees
The Vietnamese Bach Ma Mountain Peak station recorded one-day rainfall of 1,739 mm - close to the global one-day record and perhaps a new record for the northern hemisphere. It is part of a deluge Viet Nam has seen in October, shattering 35 precip records. e.vnexpress.net/news/news/en...
Vietnam sees 35 rainfall records broken in October - VnExpress International
Vietnam's northern and central regions saw a total of 35 rain records broken in October alone as two storms, Matmo and Fengshen, caused unprecedented downpours.
e.vnexpress.net
November 7, 2025 at 9:00 PM
The Vietnamese Bach Ma Mountain Peak station recorded one-day rainfall of 1,739 mm - close to the global one-day record and perhaps a new record for the northern hemisphere. It is part of a deluge Viet Nam has seen in October, shattering 35 precip records. e.vnexpress.net/news/news/en...
Reposted by Alexander Lees
A Eurasian Penduline Tit that was ringed in Ireland in 2023 has recently been resighted in western France:
Irish-ringed penduline tit seen in France
A Eurasian Penduline Tit that was ringed in Ireland in 2023 has recently been resighted in western France. The bird, a male, was one of three birds originally seen at The Gearagh, Co Cork, during January 2023 before later moving to Lough Beg on the shores of Cork Harbour in March, where they were trapped and ringed. The trio represented the first Irish record of the species at the time and generated a large twitch.
bit.ly
November 8, 2025 at 7:20 AM
A Eurasian Penduline Tit that was ringed in Ireland in 2023 has recently been resighted in western France:
Reposted by Alexander Lees
Thinking only of Rosalind Franklin today, and what was stolen from her (and so many other female scientists alongside her).
Rosalind Franklin and the damage of gender harassment
Spurred by a recent report on sexual harassment in academia, our columnist revisits a historical case and reflects on what has changed—and what hasn’t
www.science.org
November 7, 2025 at 7:58 PM
Thinking only of Rosalind Franklin today, and what was stolen from her (and so many other female scientists alongside her).
Hope for all of us a long way from the sea! Stellar find.
Proof lightning does strike twice. @beidaihebirder.bsky.social found the second Dusky Warbler at Aylestone Meadows, 100m from the site of the Christmas Eve 2021 bird. Proved patchworking works. #vc55birds #ukbirding
November 8, 2025 at 7:05 AM
Hope for all of us a long way from the sea! Stellar find.
Reposted by Alexander Lees
In France, Common #Cranes are particully exposed this year. Already +10 000 casualties were reported in what is the greatest migration corridor for the species (up to 450 000 individuals crossed in the humide area of the "Champagne" region)
#birds
jhm.fr/jusqua-10-00...
#birds
jhm.fr/jusqua-10-00...
November 7, 2025 at 7:50 PM
In France, Common #Cranes are particully exposed this year. Already +10 000 casualties were reported in what is the greatest migration corridor for the species (up to 450 000 individuals crossed in the humide area of the "Champagne" region)
#birds
jhm.fr/jusqua-10-00...
#birds
jhm.fr/jusqua-10-00...
1403 Woodpigeons visible in a single frame of this video at 21 seconds @derbyshirebirds.bsky.social #UKBirding, my estimate at the time was 12k birds through in three large waves in about 20 minutes, but I might have been well under...
November 7, 2025 at 9:52 PM
1403 Woodpigeons visible in a single frame of this video at 21 seconds @derbyshirebirds.bsky.social #UKBirding, my estimate at the time was 12k birds through in three large waves in about 20 minutes, but I might have been well under...
I was surprised to see 5 Whooper Swans moving north-west through Longdendale and dropping onto Bottoms Res @derbyshirebirds.bsky.social this morning - but presumably same phenomenon of birds abandoning the Ouse Washes #UKBirding macaulaylibrary.org/asset/644796...
November 7, 2025 at 11:47 AM
I was surprised to see 5 Whooper Swans moving north-west through Longdendale and dropping onto Bottoms Res @derbyshirebirds.bsky.social this morning - but presumably same phenomenon of birds abandoning the Ouse Washes #UKBirding macaulaylibrary.org/asset/644796...
Breathtaking Woodpigeon #Vizmig west through Longdendale @derbyshirebirds.bsky.social this morning
media.ebird.org/asset/644795... #UKBirding
media.ebird.org/asset/644795... #UKBirding
ML644795243 - Common Wood-Pigeon (White-necked) - Macaulay Library
Macaulay Library ML644795243; © Alexander Lees; Derbyshire, England, United Kingdom
media.ebird.org
November 7, 2025 at 11:39 AM
Breathtaking Woodpigeon #Vizmig west through Longdendale @derbyshirebirds.bsky.social this morning
media.ebird.org/asset/644795... #UKBirding
media.ebird.org/asset/644795... #UKBirding
Reposted by Alexander Lees
Yes, the #PrehistoricPlanetIceAge trailer is out today...
Prehistoric Planet: Ice Age — Season 3 Official Trailer | Apple TV
YouTube video by Apple TV
www.youtube.com
November 6, 2025 at 4:36 PM
Yes, the #PrehistoricPlanetIceAge trailer is out today...
Reposted by Alexander Lees
🚨🚨This is stellar investigative journalism by @kaitlintosh.bsky.social and @michelleinezsimon.bsky.social on how #elonmusk is boosting the #british right. 🧵 news.sky.com/story/the-x-...
Elon Musk is boosting the British right - and this shows how
Elon Musk is boosting the British right - and this shows how
news.sky.com
November 6, 2025 at 7:51 AM
🚨🚨This is stellar investigative journalism by @kaitlintosh.bsky.social and @michelleinezsimon.bsky.social on how #elonmusk is boosting the #british right. 🧵 news.sky.com/story/the-x-...
Reposted by Alexander Lees
I have no idea who to credit for this, apologies. But fuck, that's so accurate based on recent workplace conversations I've overheard.
November 5, 2025 at 8:12 PM
I have no idea who to credit for this, apologies. But fuck, that's so accurate based on recent workplace conversations I've overheard.
Reposted by Alexander Lees
Contamination by rodenticides is very broad & widespread. Passerines, invertebrates, many predator pathways. Most birds of prey are contaminated. The industry's own watchdog has called out the rampant illegal use, which is basically uncontrollable/unenforced: bpca.org.uk/news-and-blo...
Marked increase in illegal rodenticide use threatens future availability, says CRRU
Increase in numbers of wildlife incidents involving rodenticide brodifacoum has been identified by government-run Wildlife Incident Investigation Scheme (WIIS).
bpca.org.uk
November 5, 2025 at 9:09 PM
Contamination by rodenticides is very broad & widespread. Passerines, invertebrates, many predator pathways. Most birds of prey are contaminated. The industry's own watchdog has called out the rampant illegal use, which is basically uncontrollable/unenforced: bpca.org.uk/news-and-blo...
Reposted by Alexander Lees
Important #rewilding milestone. Officials have announced that a pack of wolves is under strict protection in the Pyrenees. The two adults and their three cubs, born this year, are being looked after by the Catalan government. It is 100 years since wolves disappeared. www.segre.com/ca/societat/...
Detectada la primera llopada a Catalunya en 100 anys, amb tres cadells
La Generalitat remarca que és un "fet històric" que arriba després de dècades de seguiment de l'espècie
www.segre.com
November 5, 2025 at 7:42 PM
Important #rewilding milestone. Officials have announced that a pack of wolves is under strict protection in the Pyrenees. The two adults and their three cubs, born this year, are being looked after by the Catalan government. It is 100 years since wolves disappeared. www.segre.com/ca/societat/...