Chris Sharpe
@sharpebirder.bsky.social
Conservation biologist: threatened birds, Redlists, bird vocalisations, RAPs & surveys, shorebirds. Working in 🇻🇪 & Latin America since 1988. Made in The North 🇬🇧.
Pinned
Chris Sharpe
@sharpebirder.bsky.social
· Jun 26
Our work on re-evaluating the status of Venezuela's shorebirds/waders is finally out in Cotinga. We hope to have addressed confusion perpetuated in the literature and present a new official checklist comprising 46 confirmed species. #ornithology
Reposted by Chris Sharpe
Essential reading for the Neotropical birder.
Neotropical Swifts - Hispanola endemics - Saving Marsh Antwren - Seeing Caura Antbird and more...
Want to get your hands on a copy? Join NBC through the website www.neotropicalbidingandconservation.org
#birding #neotropics
Neotropical Swifts - Hispanola endemics - Saving Marsh Antwren - Seeing Caura Antbird and more...
Want to get your hands on a copy? Join NBC through the website www.neotropicalbidingandconservation.org
#birding #neotropics
February 10, 2026 at 2:47 PM
Essential reading for the Neotropical birder.
Neotropical Swifts - Hispanola endemics - Saving Marsh Antwren - Seeing Caura Antbird and more...
Want to get your hands on a copy? Join NBC through the website www.neotropicalbidingandconservation.org
#birding #neotropics
Neotropical Swifts - Hispanola endemics - Saving Marsh Antwren - Seeing Caura Antbird and more...
Want to get your hands on a copy? Join NBC through the website www.neotropicalbidingandconservation.org
#birding #neotropics
It was obviously nonsense at the time. I presume Goldsmith is merely required by his patron to signal unwavering support for Trump. Quid pro quo.
February 10, 2026 at 7:05 AM
It was obviously nonsense at the time. I presume Goldsmith is merely required by his patron to signal unwavering support for Trump. Quid pro quo.
Paging UK charities that have taken the political decision to defund Venezuela: "It is now the responsibility of the international community to support the Venezuelan people, too often silenced and marginalised during this crisis, in making that hope a reality." www.thelancet.com/journals/lan...
Venezuela: health beyond the political turmoil
Since the illegal US military intervention and kidnapping of Nicolás Maduro and his
wife, Cilia Flores, news of Venezuela has been dominated by oil, narco-terrorism,
and Nobel prizes. Venezuelans have...
www.thelancet.com
February 7, 2026 at 8:46 AM
Paging UK charities that have taken the political decision to defund Venezuela: "It is now the responsibility of the international community to support the Venezuelan people, too often silenced and marginalised during this crisis, in making that hope a reality." www.thelancet.com/journals/lan...
60 years ago Paul Schwartz showed site fidelity in Northern Waterthrush wintering at Rancho Grande in N Venezuela. Motus joins more of the dots. #ornithology www.peptbo.ca/blog/interna...
International Connections: The Northern Waterthrush — PEPtBO
Learn about an individual bird’s movements, and how tracking studies provide valuable information that is otherwise unattainable through observation alone.
www.peptbo.ca
February 5, 2026 at 7:24 AM
60 years ago Paul Schwartz showed site fidelity in Northern Waterthrush wintering at Rancho Grande in N Venezuela. Motus joins more of the dots. #ornithology www.peptbo.ca/blog/interna...
Reposted by Chris Sharpe
Help protect the Rio Grande Valley’s iconic birding sites!
The proposed FY26 DHS Appropriations Bill removes long-standing protections for famous birding hotspots like Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge, Bentsen–Rio Grande Valley State Park...
The proposed FY26 DHS Appropriations Bill removes long-standing protections for famous birding hotspots like Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge, Bentsen–Rio Grande Valley State Park...
February 4, 2026 at 10:08 PM
Help protect the Rio Grande Valley’s iconic birding sites!
The proposed FY26 DHS Appropriations Bill removes long-standing protections for famous birding hotspots like Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge, Bentsen–Rio Grande Valley State Park...
The proposed FY26 DHS Appropriations Bill removes long-standing protections for famous birding hotspots like Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge, Bentsen–Rio Grande Valley State Park...
Top tip: If you've been in a country for a week, don't pretend to tell those who have spent decades in Venezuela that their own life experience is misremembered. As a "historian" this counterfactual, riddled with glaring errors, should be acutely embarrassing. www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/202...
Trump, Pirate of the Caribbean - Craig Murray
I have now been here a week and I think that I have absorbed enough to attempt a little analysis, as opposed to the simple impressions I gave shortly after arrival. Those impressions remain valid howe...
www.craigmurray.org.uk
February 4, 2026 at 11:33 AM
Top tip: If you've been in a country for a week, don't pretend to tell those who have spent decades in Venezuela that their own life experience is misremembered. As a "historian" this counterfactual, riddled with glaring errors, should be acutely embarrassing. www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/202...
Thanks for letting me know.
February 4, 2026 at 9:48 AM
Thanks for letting me know.
A highly problematic precedent for biodiversity data management that an international organisation based in Copenhagen uses a non-standard (not recognised by IHO) partisan populist political neologistic toponym created by executive order for a region known for centuries as Gulf of Mexico.
February 4, 2026 at 9:10 AM
A highly problematic precedent for biodiversity data management that an international organisation based in Copenhagen uses a non-standard (not recognised by IHO) partisan populist political neologistic toponym created by executive order for a region known for centuries as Gulf of Mexico.
Reposted by Chris Sharpe
Find out what we did in 2025. All the projects we supported in one handy download from our website. Apply - Donate - Join to conserve the birds of the Neotropics. #birding #neotropics #conservation #ornithology
February 3, 2026 at 4:18 PM
Find out what we did in 2025. All the projects we supported in one handy download from our website. Apply - Donate - Join to conserve the birds of the Neotropics. #birding #neotropics #conservation #ornithology
I'm fortunate to know some wonderful farmers, one of whom is a formidable naturalist who has shown this dullard 5+ spp. of fumitory on his margins, enthusing over beetles and birds. Meanwhile our neighbour brags of giving Red Kites (Goshawks) and Skylarks "both barrels". It takes all sorts.
February 1, 2026 at 12:37 PM
I'm fortunate to know some wonderful farmers, one of whom is a formidable naturalist who has shown this dullard 5+ spp. of fumitory on his margins, enthusing over beetles and birds. Meanwhile our neighbour brags of giving Red Kites (Goshawks) and Skylarks "both barrels". It takes all sorts.
In S Norfolk arable that retains tall hedges and scrub, farmers creating 'cultivated margins'—rich in fumitory spp. and other arable weeds—have attracted what are now astonishing local numbers of Turtle Doves, more than I've seen in England for years. So that agrees with your observations, Steve.
February 1, 2026 at 12:24 PM
In S Norfolk arable that retains tall hedges and scrub, farmers creating 'cultivated margins'—rich in fumitory spp. and other arable weeds—have attracted what are now astonishing local numbers of Turtle Doves, more than I've seen in England for years. So that agrees with your observations, Steve.
I find it hard to believe that Goldsmith is unaware of Reform policies, not least because his party and its values have long been indistinguishable from those of other authoritarian nationalist populist outfits. This smacks more of the sort of cynical opportunism characteristuc of Johnson's cronies.
January 31, 2026 at 10:25 PM
I find it hard to believe that Goldsmith is unaware of Reform policies, not least because his party and its values have long been indistinguishable from those of other authoritarian nationalist populist outfits. This smacks more of the sort of cynical opportunism characteristuc of Johnson's cronies.
Years ago I translated a book by one of El Helicoide's architects, Dirk Bornhorst. It is ironic that an architectural creation of the spiritually-minded author of 'Architecture, Science and Tao' became a jail where hundreds of political prisoners have been tortured. www.reuters.com/world/americ...
Venezuela plans amnesty law for prisoners, vows to convert major prison center
Venezuela's interim president Delcy Rodriguez on Friday announced a proposed "amnesty law" for hundreds of prisoners in the country, and said the infamous Helicoide detention center in the capital Car...
www.reuters.com
January 31, 2026 at 9:03 AM
Years ago I translated a book by one of El Helicoide's architects, Dirk Bornhorst. It is ironic that an architectural creation of the spiritually-minded author of 'Architecture, Science and Tao' became a jail where hundreds of political prisoners have been tortured. www.reuters.com/world/americ...
These people aren't stupid. They know what Reform is. They—most explicitly via their patron Johnson—created the very conditions in which authoritarian nationalist populism thrives. They reckon Reform could gain power. Many have therefore defected to Reform. Being utterly unprincipled, will they too?
January 30, 2026 at 5:24 PM
These people aren't stupid. They know what Reform is. They—most explicitly via their patron Johnson—created the very conditions in which authoritarian nationalist populism thrives. They reckon Reform could gain power. Many have therefore defected to Reform. Being utterly unprincipled, will they too?
I agree with you, Richard. I wonder if those arguing that environmentalists must "hold our noses and get on board" have ever lived under an authoritarian regime. Bitter experience shows where such complacency leads. Long story short: environmental advocates are amongst the first to be persecuted.
January 30, 2026 at 1:27 PM
I agree with you, Richard. I wonder if those arguing that environmentalists must "hold our noses and get on board" have ever lived under an authoritarian regime. Bitter experience shows where such complacency leads. Long story short: environmental advocates are amongst the first to be persecuted.
Having advocated for decades for more support and recognition of the fundamental role of local and indigenous communities in conservation, this analysis using the Environmental Justice Atlas (EJAtlas) dataset is most welcome. Environmental organisations take note. www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
Social movements are transformative agents for biodiversity conservation | PNAS
Civil society has long been a catalyst for social change by reshaping structures,
influencing values, and challenging power dynamics; however, its ...
www.pnas.org
January 30, 2026 at 10:13 AM
Having advocated for decades for more support and recognition of the fundamental role of local and indigenous communities in conservation, this analysis using the Environmental Justice Atlas (EJAtlas) dataset is most welcome. Environmental organisations take note. www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
The alliances between Johnson and Trump, and the latter and the UK's authoritarian nationalist populists are a matter of public record, so hardly surprising that Johnson's cronies are working for Reform UK Ltd. Tribute to their patron. None of this is good for the environment—or democracy.
January 30, 2026 at 9:40 AM
The alliances between Johnson and Trump, and the latter and the UK's authoritarian nationalist populists are a matter of public record, so hardly surprising that Johnson's cronies are working for Reform UK Ltd. Tribute to their patron. None of this is good for the environment—or democracy.
A year on, few people have been so consistently wrong about Trump as the UK's ex Environment Minister.
January 30, 2026 at 7:51 AM
A year on, few people have been so consistently wrong about Trump as the UK's ex Environment Minister.
Reposted by Chris Sharpe
The Yanomami, an Indigenous group from the Amazon, is confronting surges in #malaria amid increasing illegal gold mining in their territory. Read 'Investigating the Yanomami malaria outbreak: gold mining and malaria': doi.org/10.1098/rsbl... #BiologyLetters
January 27, 2026 at 7:01 PM
The Yanomami, an Indigenous group from the Amazon, is confronting surges in #malaria amid increasing illegal gold mining in their territory. Read 'Investigating the Yanomami malaria outbreak: gold mining and malaria': doi.org/10.1098/rsbl... #BiologyLetters
One day this will all seem very silly, if not impossible to comprehend. www.npr.org/2026/01/28/n...
Author Kurt Vonnegut's estate files lawsuit to challenge Utah book ban law
The author Kurt Vonnegut's estate has sued to challenge a Utah law that allows school districts to ban books from their libraries. Supporters of the law say it keeps pornography out of schools.
www.npr.org
January 29, 2026 at 12:03 PM
One day this will all seem very silly, if not impossible to comprehend. www.npr.org/2026/01/28/n...
Reposted by Chris Sharpe
Incredible self own for the US. The damage being done to the US scientific enterprise is generational. We will look back on this as a tipping point where the US chose all on its own to stop leading the world in science.
www.science.org/content/arti...
www.science.org/content/arti...
U.S. government has lost more than 10,000 STEM Ph.D.s since Trump took office
A Science analysis reveals how many were fired, retired, or quit across 14 agencies
www.science.org
January 28, 2026 at 11:46 AM
Incredible self own for the US. The damage being done to the US scientific enterprise is generational. We will look back on this as a tipping point where the US chose all on its own to stop leading the world in science.
www.science.org/content/arti...
www.science.org/content/arti...
I think the fundamental difference between a journalist (or researcher) and Murray is whether you're prepared to lie to support your a priori assumptions. That's a red line for me, disqualifying any such person as a mere propagandist. All really useful sources may be biased but they don't fabricate.
January 28, 2026 at 10:56 AM
I think the fundamental difference between a journalist (or researcher) and Murray is whether you're prepared to lie to support your a priori assumptions. That's a red line for me, disqualifying any such person as a mere propagandist. All really useful sources may be biased but they don't fabricate.
Just a few days to go until our next deadline. Apply at the link below. #ornithology
NBC @neobirdconserve.bsky.social Conservation Fund supports projects to conserve threatened Neotropical birds by small grants of USD 1000–3000. Next deadline = 1 Feb. More information & application forms (English/Español/Português): neotropicalbirdingandconservation.org/conservation/ #ornithology
Conservation - Neotropical Birding and Conservation
neotropicalbirdingandconservation.org
January 28, 2026 at 9:44 AM
Just a few days to go until our next deadline. Apply at the link below. #ornithology
Very difficult. An agenda is an obvious flag for caution. I think you'd be hard pressed to find an agenda in Phil's work, whereas Murray's blog contains so much obvious falsehood that it's hard to believe he is at all sincere. I have no reason to take any particular side.
January 28, 2026 at 9:41 AM
Very difficult. An agenda is an obvious flag for caution. I think you'd be hard pressed to find an agenda in Phil's work, whereas Murray's blog contains so much obvious falsehood that it's hard to believe he is at all sincere. I have no reason to take any particular side.
Phil is an ex-Guardian journalist working for the excellent Crisis Group who—most importantly—lives as an ordinary Venezuelan. He is neither beholden to the regime nor the 'opposition'. And, as a birder, he's obviously an unimpeachable source!
January 28, 2026 at 9:21 AM
Phil is an ex-Guardian journalist working for the excellent Crisis Group who—most importantly—lives as an ordinary Venezuelan. He is neither beholden to the regime nor the 'opposition'. And, as a birder, he's obviously an unimpeachable source!