Which land-types allow mixed-species bird flocks to move outside of forests, how do flocks change as the distance to the forest increases, and how do leaders modulate movements? New article out in Movement Ecology -- https://t.co/eb3fOfKVJI
New article on the future of online conferencing combines chronology of environmental science conferences and a survey of conference managers, with the hope to bolster in-person conferencing with the accessibility and outreach of online elements. https://t.co/QCBQbfsvvG
Excited to share new student work! That of Sihao Chen from XJTLU on Barn Swallow nest success in Suzhou https://t.co/zZCrICChxI, and that of Wenzhang Dai of Nanjing University on how heavy metals influence bird escape behavior https://t.co/doycQuN9eP
Excited that the Association for Tropical Biology will be held in Xishuangbanna, China next year (June 28-July 3, 2026)! A wonderful place to visit and the conference will have lots to offer. The call for sessions (including symposia) is at: https://t.co/CsWqKFQ2FJ.
https://t.co/152HS6gbJb
Huge new @GEB_macro paper looking at acoustic monitoring efforts around the world. The who, what, where, when, and how of passive acoustic monitoring. With >100 authors!
"Worldwide soundscapes: a synthesis of passive acoustic monitoring across realms"
Enjoyed moderating a webinar on mixed-species animal groups with my friend Gabriel Colorado and three great speakers: Giselle Mangini, Matthew Hansen and Meredith Palmer. Now up at Youtube at: https://t.co/yYJgF2ueaa
Congratulations to Iresha Wijerathne, PhD candidate at Guangxi University, who has written a new article to investigate how Sri Lankan endemic vertebrates will be affected by climate change. Amphibians and reptiles are more likely to go extinct.
Our latest #study explores the utility of acoustic indices in measuring biodiversity using data from 114 sites in #Cyprus, #China, and #Australia. Specifically, we evaluated the combined effectiveness of 60 acoustic #indices in measuring bird species richness using #machine #learning techniques.
Key findings:
• The effectiveness of acoustic indices varies widely by region (e.g., R²: Cyprus = 0.06, China = 0.31, Australia = 0.52).
• No single index was consistently effective across all regions, and only three indices worked in more than one region.
• While useful for broader biodiversity surveys, acoustic indices may not yet provide the accuracy needed to monitor bird species richness effectively.
Read more about our findings here: https://t.co/Rjs5JlhcBS
@imperial_pigeon@GoodaleEben
Great to have old friend Dan Liang visit XJTLU and talk about his postdoc work on overharvesting in Asia. Great, too, to hear of his plans in the future to continue the project, and communicate directly with fishermen to stop birds dying in nets.
Excited to be attending ATBC in Kigali, Rwanda! This is my first time on the African continent and I’m bummed that my schedule doesn’t allow me to explore much outside the conference center. But the ideas and energy inside the conference are very fulfilling! #atbc2024
Biodiversity ~ ecosystem function relationships provide strong justification for conservation. In a new article, my colleague Rob Magrath and I ask whether species diversity increases the information that flows between species in a community. See https://t.co/FZ7yGR8CJ8
Excited to share a new SI in Phil Trans Royal Soc B all about mixed-species animal groups! Showcasing diversity in the groups themselves and in the scientists who study them.
https://t.co/ImHn8FXbWq
A new favorite visualization: my colleagues, led by Yong Shen and Qiang Zhang of the Guangdong Academy of Science, show that mixed-species flocks change from random associations at high elevations to species matching each other in the lowlands https://t.co/Todb43aRP3
I’ve spent my career working near long-term vegetation plots, but as a zoologist, never found a way to use them. Glad to share today a new study that shows how automatic detection of birds on plots using audio recordings can lead to the identification of plant-animal interactions