Keith C. Hamer | Lightnews

Keith C Hamer

@keithchamer.bsky.social

290 followers 210 following 1 posts

Ecologist and seabird biologist, now happily retired

Videos

Environmental science 52%

Biology 16%

Posts Replies Media Videos

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer

Raptor Persecution UK @raptorpersuk.bsky.social · 1d

Extensive effort by multiple law enforcement / science / conservation partners to determine this as a wildlife crime. But of course, yet again the offender hasn't been identified, charged, prosecuted etc. Something needs to change.

#RaptorResearch

raptorpersecutionuk.org/2025/11/24/h...

Hen Harrier found dead in Northumberland National Park with shotgun damage to satellite tag

This is a blog about one of those dead Hen Harriers for whom we’ve been waiting over a year for Natural England to confirm the cause of death. A Hen Harrier (photo by Pete Walkden) The young …

raptorpersecutionuk.org

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer

Simon Lewis @simonlewis.bsky.social · 3d

Cover decision text, not passed yet, unfccc.int/sites/defaul...

No mention of roadmaps for transitioning away from fossil fuels or curbing deforestation.

Bitterly disappointing.

unfccc.int

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer

Susan Davies @smdavies67.bsky.social · 3d

@wadertales.bsky.social has reminded me of his super blog which provides an overview of the migration pathways for our #waders ▶️ wadertales.wordpress.com/2017/07/20/w...

Which wader, when and why?

This is a quick summary of wader migration, for British and Irish birdwatchers. The maps are taken from the migration book Time to Fly by Jim Flegg, published by the British Trust for Ornithology, …

wadertales.wordpress.com

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer, Steve Carver

Raptor Persecution UK @raptorpersuk.bsky.social · 5d

New report on gamebird releases in Cairngorms National Park doesn't tell even half the story.

Study included less than half (45%) of estates rearing & releasing non-native gamebirds. MSPs need to interpret results cautiously & appropriately.

raptorpersecutionuk.org/2025/11/21/n...

New report on gamebird releases in Cairngorms National Park doesn’t tell even half the story

In spring 2025, news emerged that the GWCT (Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust) was going to be conducting a pilot study to look at the number of non-native gamebirds (Pheasants & Red-legge…

raptorpersecutionuk.org

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer

Nature @nature.com · 5d

This inner compass could help to explain how certain animals can achieve astonishing feats of long-distance navigation

go.nature.com/4pn3KL9

Has birds’ mysterious ‘compass’ organ been found at last?

Multiple lines of evidence suggest that pigeons sense magnetic fields by detecting electric currents in their inner ears.

go.nature.com

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer, Chris R. Shepherd

Raptor Persecution UK @raptorpersuk.bsky.social · 5d

Another 'missing' Hen Harrier, this time in the Moorfoot Hills, south of Edinburgh - a well known hotbed of illegal raptor persecution over several decades.

#RaptorResearch #WildlifeCrime

raptorpersecutionuk.org/2025/11/20/s...

Satellite-tagged Hen Harrier ‘Circe’ disappears in suspicious circumstances in Moorfoot Hills, south Scotland

Press release from Hen Harrier Action (20th November 2025) HEN HARRIER ACTION APPEALS FOR INFORMATION AS ANOTHER RARE HEN HARRIER SUSPECTED TO HAVE BEEN ILLEGALLY KILLED IN SCOTLAND A satellite tag…

raptorpersecutionuk.org

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer

Yorkshire Wildlife Trust @yorkswildlife.bsky.social · 5d

On the 15th November, the Derwent Hunt once again trespassed into our Chafer Wood nature reserve near Ebberston. We are absolutely outraged at their audacity and disrespect.

If you have evidence of the hunt or hounds accessing YWT land, please send to [email protected]

Read our full statement below.

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer

Michelle Wille @duckswabber.bsky.social · 7d

More work linking irregular iris pigmentation in gannets to prior HPAI infections: likelihood of NP antibody increased with iris pigment irregularity. Moderate correlations for H5 antibodies.
👉 www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer, Brooke Harrington, Pieter Vantieghem , and 1 more Keith C. Hamer, Brooke Harrington, Pieter Vantieghem, Tuomas Kankaanpää

James CBR @jamescbr.bsky.social · 7d

For the first time, humans have tracked an individual butterfly, as shown in the Monarch migration of north America.
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/17/s...
@savebutterflies.bsky.social
@bc-suffolk.bsky.social

We Can Now Track Individual Monarch Butterflies. It’s a Revelation.

www.nytimes.com

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer

Morten Frederiksen @seabirdmortenf.bsky.social · 11d

Needing to model impacts on seabird populations in Northwest Europe?

Not sure where to find useful values for demographic variables?

Look no further! In this new paper, we provide model-derived values for age-specific survival of 25 species.

besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

Demography of marine birds in the Northeast Atlantic: Informed parameter values for population modelling

We developed matrix population models for 54 regional populations of 25 marine bird species in the north-east Atlantic, based on 30 years of monitoring data. In Step 1, we parameterised the models wi...

besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer

Raptor Persecution UK @raptorpersuk.bsky.social · 12d

Hen Harrier Susie, whose chicks were stamped to death on a Yorkshire Dales grouse moor in 2022, has been found dead on a N Pennines grouse moor with gunshot injuries.

18+ months of silence about this crime from the police & Natural England.

#RaptorResearch

raptorpersecutionuk.org/2025/11/14/h...

Hen Harrier ‘Susie’, whose chicks were stamped to death in 2022, has been found dead on a North Pennines grouse moor with gunshot injuries

If ever there was an example demonstrating the high level of persecution faced by Hen Harriers on UK grouse moors, the lack of consequences for the offenders, and the lack of justice for the victim…

raptorpersecutionuk.org

Reposted by Peter Thorne, Keith C. Hamer, Jane K. Hill , and 1 more Peter Thorne, Keith C. Hamer, Jane K. Hill, Andreas De Block

Alex Holcombe @alexh.bsky.social · 12d

" 60 per cent of UK university libraries are considering dropping their big deals with the five major academic publisher"
Many call for diamond open access. A new organisation with many partners, @ojcollective.bsky.social , is launching in January.
www.researchprofessionalnews.com/rr-news-uk-v...

Chaos is coming for scholarly publishing - Research Professional News

Buckling of commercial models alongside maturing of community-led efforts promises major shifts, says Caroline Edwards

www.researchprofessionalnews.com

Reposted by Ingolf Kühn, Jonathan Lenoir, Joaquín Hortal , and 4 more Ingolf Kühn, Jonathan Lenoir, Joaquín Hortal, Keith C. Hamer, Jane K. Hill, Christoph Scherber, Benjamin Wildermuth

LIB @leibnizlib.bsky.social · 15d

#LIBresearch: A new study introduces the Global Repository of Insect Traits (GRIT) — a worldwide initiative integrating insect trait data to make insects more understandable and comparable across ecosystems. → doi.org/10.1111/icad.70035

@cscherber.bsky.social

Toward a global repository of insect traits (GRIT)

Biodiversity loss is accelerating, yet insect conservation is hindered by the absence of a centralised, comprehensive trait database. We propose the GRIT, a FAIR, open-access platform uniting datase...

doi.org

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer

Philip Amies @amiesphilip.bsky.social · 18d

Might be as close to the reality as any account gets.

www.nature.com/articles/d41...

What Rosalind Franklin truly contributed to the discovery of DNA’s structure

Franklin was no victim in how the DNA double helix was solved. An overlooked letter and an unpublished news article, both written in 1953, reveal that she was an equal player.

www.nature.com

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer

Liam U. Taylor @liamtaylor.bsky.social · 18d

Direct publisher link:
academic.oup.com/beheco/advan...

Plan ahead, or wing it? How storm-petrel parents adjust food delivery to young chicks

New technology reveals how storm-petrels choose to allocate more food to their single chick as it grows older. These pelagic seabirds fly hundreds of kilom

academic.oup.com

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer

BOU @bou.org.uk · 18d

📢 APPLICATIONS OPEN

For BOU Member Conference Attendance Grants

Now funding member attendance at any #ornithology conference 🪶

Low-carbon travel encouraged

⏰ Deadline: 5 January 2026

bou.org.uk/funding/m...

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer

Edinburgh Napier University @edinburghnapier.bsky.social · 20d

🐦‍⬛ | Wild seabirds are more likely to split up in windy weather, according to a newly published study led by #EdNapier.

The paper reveals that environmental conditions before the breeding season appear to have an impact on mate faithfulness.

Full story ➡️ orlo.uk/Zfiqf

#MustBeNapier

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer

Ben Sheldon @sheldonbirds.bsky.social · 20d

This is an exciting project as part of an exciting larger grant - excellent opportunity

Andreas Nord @cyanistesnord.bsky.social · 21d

I am recruting a #postdoc for a project investigating the evolution of avian heat tolerance in @erc.europa.eu project #HotLife. Fieldwork over broad latitudinal gradients, common-garden experiments, and more. Read more and apply👇
shorturl.at/WA1Qa

Would appreciate a re-post!

@evoldir.bsky.social

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer, Lesley A. Hall, Steve Carver

Raptor Persecution UK @raptorpersuk.bsky.social · 29d

Victorian attitudes towards birds of prey in the UK are fueled by sensationalist fear-mongering like this, published routinely by mainstream media.

#RaptorResearch

raptorpersecutionuk.org/2025/10/28/a...

Absurd claim that White-tailed Eagles ‘snatched’ five Shetland ponies leads to inevitable call to ‘shoot eagles’

The absurd claim that White-tailed Eagles had ‘snatched’ five Shetland pony foals on South Uist hit the headlines at the end of August. A crofter / farmer named Donald Cameron said that…

raptorpersecutionuk.org

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer

Ruth Dunn @ruthedunn.bsky.social · Oct 27

New in @natrevbiodiv.nature.com: our review of the influence of #seabirds, via their nutrient transfer, on islands & adjacent marine ecosystems 🐦🏝️🪸

We highlight knowledge gaps & future directions ✨

"The circular seabird economy is critical for oceans, islands and people": doi.org/10.1038/s443...

Schematic diagram of the influence of seabirds on temperate and tropical near-shore marine systems.
Temperatre systems:
- Nutrient enrichment and predation on herbivorous invertebrates can lead to increased algal production
- Phytoplankton communities change, featuring more large-celled species
- Intertidal organisms incorporate seabird-enriched material by grazing on detritus and biofilm in tidepools
- Macroalgae biodiversity and primary production are boosted
Tropical systems:
- Mangrove leaf nutritional quality increases
- Corals recover faster after bleaching events
- Fish biomass increases across different trophic groups
- Pelagic and benthic consumers' foraging behaviour shifts
- Parrotfish grazing and bioerosion rates increase
- Fish grow larger

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer, Pieter Vantieghem

Richard Fox @richardfoxbc.bsky.social · Oct 22

Fascinating Swedish study proving that threatened butterflies can still disperse surprisingly long distances eg Marsh Fritillary >8km and more than 10% of Large Blues travelled at least 1km resjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/... 🌍

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer

Colin Beale @cmbeale.bsky.social · Oct 20

This was a great paper to work with @tiff-ki.bsky.social and great to see it out now!

Richard Fox @richardfoxbc.bsky.social · Oct 20

Really nice paper from @tiff-ki.bsky.social & co. shows no overall decline in butterfly species richness in Sulawesi over 166 yrs, but changing communities with endemics & forest specialists declining. Short-term trends unreliable measures of long term. royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/... 🌏

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer

Jen Gill @jengill.bsky.social · Oct 19

New Wadertales blog on an important IBIS paper from Jesse Conklin et al: the winter distribution of bar-tailed godwit subspecies is not what we thought:
wadertales.wordpress.com/2025/10/18/r...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
#ornithology @wadertales.bsky.social @globalflyway.bsky.social

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer

Ben Sheldon @sheldonbirds.bsky.social · Oct 14

New work from @devisatarkar.bsky.social et al on how effects of climate variability- particularly more unusual events - depend on developmental stage & prevailing conditions in Wytham Woods great tits.

Devi Satarkar @devisatarkar.bsky.social · Oct 14

New preprint! 🪶

We analysed 60 years of data on 83,000+ great tits to show how extreme climate impacts on nestling growth and survival are stage-specific and context-dependent 🐣 🌍🔥❄️

With @davididiaquez.bsky.social @iremsepil.bsky.social @sheldonbirds.bsky.social

www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...

a 14 day old great tit nestling, ringed for individual identification

Figure from the paper showing that extreme climatic events interact with ambient climatic conditions and breeding timing within a season, in a developmental stage-specific manner, to influence nestling growth in great tits

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer, Federico De Pascalis

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution @whoi.edu · Oct 10

Why does a pigeon-sized bird purposely throw itself into hurricane-force winds?

With the help of lightweight GPS trackers, WHOI biologist Francesco Ventura has unlocked the Desertas petrel’s secret to success: cyclones!

📲 Find out what surprised researchers the most from BBC: go.whoi.edu/Petrel

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer

Niels de Winter @nielsjdewinter.bsky.social · Oct 7

Such a sad story, but good that it can be told in full in museums now.
doi.org/10.1126/scie...

Fate of the last female great auk is finally solved

DNA and historical sleuthing have traced the extinct bird’s remains to a museum in Ohio

doi.org

Reposted by Robin J. Pakeman, Keith C. Hamer

Xavier Lambin @lambin-ecology.bsky.social · Oct 5

For 101 years, ecologists have sought to explain the 3-4 years multi-annual cycles of voles and lemmings. In our paper, doi.org/10.1073/pnas..., we find that Density-dependent recruitment, but not survival drives cyclic dynamics in a field vole population, overturning accepted wisdom.

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer

Raptor Persecution UK @raptorpersuk.bsky.social · Oct 4

29 'missing' Hen Harriers & nearly 40 birds of prey poisoned, trapped or shot in Yorkshire Dales National Park since 2015.

Not so much a National Park - more of a National Disgrace.

#RaptorResearch #WildlifeCrime #Ornithology #Yorkshire

raptorpersecutionuk.org/2025/10/04/2...

29 ‘missing’ Hen Harriers & nearly 40 birds of prey poisoned, trapped or shot in Yorkshire Dales National Park since 2015

Media attention has been drawn to the Yorkshire Dales National Park this week, following the RSPB’s press release on the suspicious disappearance of a satellite-tagged Hen Harrier named &#821…

raptorpersecutionuk.org

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer

BOU @bou.org.uk · Oct 3

Temporal Variation in Early-Life Conditions Impacts on Later-Life Levels of Infection in Sex Specific Ways | doi.org/10.1002/ece3... | Ecology and Evolution | #ornithology 🪶

Reposted by Keith C. Hamer

Raptor Persecution UK @raptorpersuk.bsky.social · Oct 2

Natural England confirms ongoing & relentless illegal persecution is reason why Hen Harriers are still rare in England.

#RaptorResearch #WildlifeCrime #Ornithology

raptorpersecutionuk.org/2025/10/02/h...

Hardly any Hen Harrier nesting attempts on English grouse moors for second year running

Natural England has finally got around to publishing the data for the 2025 Hen Harrier breeding season, which demonstrate very clear differences between areas managed for conservation and those man…

raptorpersecutionuk.org

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