Simon_vandepitte

Graduated as an #Ecologist @UGent in '23

[Simon_vandepitte @SimonVandepitte]

😢

[BirdLife International @BirdLife_News]

🚨Red List Update🚨

Migratory shorebird populations are plummeting globally. ⚠️ 📉

16 species have been reclassified to higher threat categories, with potential causes including habitat loss and degradation, disturbance, hunting and climate change. 🌊

🌎 Travelling the world on migration routes called flyways, shorebirds are a familiar sight worldwide.

Protecting shorebirds is vital for all of us. 💚 The places migratory birds stop and rest on their long journeys are important for millions of people.

CBD COP16 is the moment to galvanise action to halt and reverse nature loss by 2030. 🤝

Nature loss can be reversed but extinctions cannot.❌

Read more here 👉 https://t.co/FtBARsZzRp

#COP16Colombia #BirdLifeInternational #BirdLifeFlyways #RedList #HabitatLoss #Shorebirds #ClimateChange #Extinction #Conservation

[Simon_vandepitte @SimonVandepitte]

I can say I saw the #Auroraborealis in #Ghent centrum! Incredible experience. Sweet memories from Finland come to mind. #northenlightinbelgium

[Simon_vandepitte @SimonVandepitte]

There is no time for delays! Our #forests deserve proper protection, not only for the #biodiversity living there but also for us. Forests are #crucial for our well-being!

#Europepleasebesmart

[WWF EU @WWFEU]

🚨 BREAKING: @EU_Commission proposes delay of #EUDR

Our reaction 1/3😡"President Von der Leyen is effectively giving her green light for deforestation to continue for another 12 months - at a time when urgent action is needed to stop it. This delay unfairly penalises those companies that have already made significant investments to comply with the EUDR, while rewarding those who have lagged behind," said Anke Schulmeister-Oldenhove, Senior Forest Policy Officer, WWF European Policy Office. @ASchulmeisterO

[Simon_vandepitte @SimonVandepitte]

Lovely memories from my traineeship as a #field assistant last summer at the #Bothnianbay! A really nice poster made by @BelojevicJelena about the #ruffs. Check it out!

[Jelena Belojevic @BelojevicJelena]

Such an amazing week at the #IWSG24 conference in Montpellier 🤯 Thank you everyone for voting for our poster 🥈(delighted by the prize!) and lovely discussions about #shorebirds #ruff and #SouthernDunlin before and after my talk. Hope to see you next year!

[Simon_vandepitte @SimonVandepitte]

Wonderful news! Let's see now about the implementation... #RestoreNature #sorryforbelgium

[WWF EU @WWFEU]

🚨 BREAKING: We have the EU Nature Restoration Law!

Member States have just adopted the game-changing law for Europe's degraded ecosystems

It's a huge win for the EU's nature, citizens & the economy and the people behind the #RestoreNature campaign!

Thank you all 💚

[Simon_vandepitte @SimonVandepitte]

Cute, Cuter, Cutest? This #dunlin #nest survived the challenges of being in a coastal meadow and successfully hatched. Let's root for the chicks now. Every chick counts in this critically #endangered population in the #bothnianbay !

[Jelena Belojevic @BelojevicJelena]

#Southerndunlin chicks are the cutest 6 gram fluff balls! And their parents are on top of their task 🥹 The mother is always controlling if we put the rings well enough and going to brood the chicks right after we're done! Video thanks to @SimonVandepitte

[Simon_vandepitte @SimonVandepitte]

I'm #blue da ba dee da ba die... Are there other #wader #researchers observing an increase in aberrant #egg colour in clutches this year?

[Jelena Belojevic @BelojevicJelena]

#ruffs eggs have been showing an increase in aberrant egg color this year across multiple field sites - has any of the #wader researchers noticed such a trend? #eggblue 😁

[Kari Koivula @KoivulaKari]

In 65° N, Ruff lekking is peaking. At the same time subarctic passage migrants arrive and stop for fuelling. So many females swarming around!

[Simon_vandepitte @SimonVandepitte]

Hopefully, authorities will recognize the importance of this area for  this #endangered bird species . I have good memories of #Dotterels when I did fieldwork on them in the #Utsjoki area in '22. They are truly fascinating #birds!

[Wader Study @WaderStudy]

A key Eurasian Dotterel site in the Western Alps threatened by a solar park
by Lionel Maumary

https://t.co/LgvCbmnd9l
#waders #shorebirds #ornithology #openaccess

[Simon_vandepitte @SimonVandepitte]

I look forward to chapter two of the field season: treasure hunting for #nests. It was a pleasure to observe the #ruffs' #behaviour in their natural #habitat.

A piece of music to describe the mood of the ruffs ;)
https://t.co/pVYhhhdMy7

[Jelena Belojevic @BelojevicJelena]

#lekking is past its peak and we're excited to start the nest searches next week, not as excited as #ruffs when they see a female and a satellite approach ❤️‍🔥

[Jelena Belojevic @BelojevicJelena]

Some opportunities just present themselves. This Satellite got a copulation for free! #ruffs #lekking #bothnianbay

[Simon_vandepitte @SimonVandepitte]

Things are getting busy here in #Finland. #Ruffs are ready to #lek. Wonderful morning in a #meadow at the #BothnianBay. Interesting #behaviour !

[Jelena Belojevic @BelojevicJelena]

Can you see what's happening here? #ruff lekking mania has started. Males are really into it! Video by @SimonVandepitte

[Jelena Belojevic @BelojevicJelena]

#ruff and #southerndunlin fieldwork can start! After a cold wave in the past days in the #BothnianBay the waders are finally warming and love is in the air 💗 @SimonVandepitte