Dr Alexander Lees

Who am I?

Life-long ornithologist, happiest on remote oceanic islands or in tropical forests.

Academic and professional qualifications

BSc 1st Class (Hons) Biological Sciences at the University of East Anglia, UK and the University of California Irvine, USA (1998-2002)

PhD University of East Anglia (NERC studentship 2004-2008) 

Previous employment

• Cornell Lab of Ornithology Postdoctoral fellow, Cornell University, USA. (Oct 2015 – Sep 2016) 
• CNPq Post-doctoral Fellowship (Atração de Jovem Talento), Museu Paraense Emílio Goeldi, Brazil (Oct 2012 – Sep 2015)
• Visiting Fellow, Cambridge University, UK (May 2012 – Oct 2012)
• CAPES Post-doctoral Scholar, Museu Paraense Emílio Goeldi, Brazil (Jun 2010 – Apr 2012) 

Other academic service (administration and management)

MSc Project Unit co-ordinator

Languages

English, Portuguese

Why study ?

Understanding how to accomodate 8 billion people on planet earth without wrecking it is the greatest challenge facing mankind. We have to quantify trade-offs between biodiversity conservation, ecosystem service provision, human wellbeing and economic development to meet this grand challenge. 

Undergraduate courses

Wildlife Ecology and Behaviour, Field Courses, Conservation of Biodiversity, Genetics, Adaptation and Diversity, Ecology and Environment, Global Environmental Issues, Landscape Ecology, How Science Works, Conservation Biology, Tropical Ecology and Conservation

Postgraduate teaching

Species Conservation, Topics in Conservation and Sustainability, Avian Biology and Conservation, Field Courses

Postgraduate supervision (completed/in progress)

PhD students:

James Richardson (co-supervisor)

Liana Chesini Rossi (co-supervisor, São Paulo State University)

Jeremy Dickens (co-supervisor, University of Bonn)

PhD Completions

Oliver Metcalf (DOS 2021)

Kasia Mikolajczak (co-supervisor, Lancaster University 2019)

Harry Marshall (co-supervisor 2020)

External examiner roles

• Programme external examiner: MSc in Wildlife Conservation, Salford University
• PhD external examiner 2017-2022 UK 3 (Oxford University, Royal Holloway); Cyprus: 1 (University of Cyprus); Brazil –3 (Universidade Federal do Pará (2), Universidade Federal de Viçosa).

Research expertise

I have been working on Amazonian conservation issues for over 16 years and am one of the co-investigators of the Sustainable Amazon Network which attempts to understand the trade-offs between biodiversity value, ecosystem services and economic development along tropical agricultural frontiers. I spent five years (2010-2015) working at the Goeldi Museum in the Brazilian Amazon with which institution I still maintains close ties and a year at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Cornell University in 2015-2016. Beyond intensive field-work supported studies aiming to understand land-use change, and the drivers of past, current and future biodiversity loss I am involved in leading on several large-scale syntheses and meta-analyses addressing macro-ecological and phylogenetic work at large scales to understand the context and interplay of ecological and evolutionary factors.

Publications

• Books (authored/edited/special issues)

  A. Lees, J. Gilroy (2021). Vagrancy in Birds. Helm (UK) & Princeton University Press (USA).

• Journal articles

  AC. Lees (2024). Social and avian justice. Current Biology. 34(5), pp.R179-R181.

  JMG. Capurucho, LJ. Musher, A. Lees, MA. Rego, G. Del-Rio, et al. A. Aleixo, VE. Luzuriaga-Aveiga, M. Ferreira, CC. Ribas, G. Thom. (2024). Amazonian avian biogeography: broadscale patterns, microevolutionary processes, and habitat-specific models revealed by multidisciplinary approaches. Ornithology. 141(1),

  AC. Lees, BC. Sheldon (2024). New UK immigration rules threaten academic mobility. Nature. 625(7993),

  P. Dufour, AC. Lees, J. Gilroy, P-A. Crochet (2024). The overlooked importance of vagrancy in ecology and evolution. Trends in Ecology and Evolution. 39(1), pp.19-22.

  RD. Lima, AC. Lees (2022). Unmasking complex migration syndromes and seasonal plumage colouration of the White‐naped Xenopsaris (Xenopsaris albinucha). Ibis. 164(3), pp.667-678.

  OC. Metcalf, J. Barlow, S. Marsden, N. Gomes de Moura, E. Berenguer, et al. J. Ferreira, AC. Lees. (2022). Optimizing tropical forest bird surveys using passive acoustic monitoring and high temporal resolution sampling. Remote Sensing in Ecology and Conservation. 8(1), pp.45-56.

  J. Phelps, S. Aravind, S. Cheyne, I. Dabrowski Pedrini, R. Fajrini, et al. CA. Jones, AC. Lees, A. Mance, G. Nagara, TP. Nugraha, J. Pendergrass, U. Purnamasari, M. Rodriguez, R. Saputra, SP. Sharp, A. Sokolowki, EL. Webb. (2021). Environmental liability litigation could remedy biodiversity loss. Conservation Letters. 14(6), pp.e12821-e12821.

  C. Devenish, AC. Lees, NJ. Collar, SJ. Marsden (2021). Multi‐decadal land use impacts across the vast range of an iconic threatened species. Diversity and Distributions. 27(11), pp.2033-2296.

  H. Marshall, GA. Glorizky, NJ. Collar, AC. Lees, A. Moss, et al. P. Yuda, SJ. Marsden. (2021). Understanding motivations and attitudes among songbird‐keepers to identify best approaches to demand reduction. Conservation Science and Practice. 3(10), pp.e507-e507.

  AC. Lees, C. Devenish, JI. Areta, CB. de Araújo, C. Keller, et al. B. Phalan, LF. Silveira. (2021). Assessing the Extinction Probability of the Purple-winged Ground Dove, an Enigmatic Bamboo Specialist. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution. 9,

  JH. Hatfield, J. Barlow, CA. Joly, AC. Lees, CH. de Freitas Parruco, et al. JA. Tobias, CDL. Orme, C. Banks-Leite. (2020). Mediation of area and edge effects by adjacent land use. Conservation Biology. 34(2), pp.395-404.

  ET. Miller, GM. Leighton, BG. Freeman, AC. Lees, RA. Ligon (2020). Reply to “Convergent and divergent selection in sympatry drive plumage evolution in woodpeckers”. Nature Communications. 11(1),

  H. Marshall, NJ. Collar, AC. Lees, A. Moss, P. Yuda, et al. SJ. Marsden. (2020). Spatio-temporal dynamics of consumer demand driving the Asian Songbird Crisis. Biological Conservation. 241, pp.108237-108237.

  ET. Miller, GM. Leighton, BG. Freeman, AC. Lees, RA. Ligon (2019). Ecological and geographical overlap drive plumage evolution and mimicry in woodpeckers. Nature Communications. 10,

  AC. Lees (2018). Interspecific conflict structures urban avian assemblages. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 115(49), pp.12331-12333.

  GD. Lennox, TA. Gardner, JR. Thomson, J. Ferreira, E. Berenguer, et al. AC. Lees, R. Mac Nally, LEOC. Aragão, SFB. Ferraz, J. Louzada, NG. Moura, VHF. Oliveira, R. Pardini, RRC. Solar, FZ. Vaz-de Mello, ICG. Vieira, J. Barlow. (2018). Second rate or a second chance? Assessing biomass and biodiversity recovery in regenerating Amazonian forests. Global Change Biology. 24(12), pp.5680-5694.

  WD. Robinson, AC. Lees, JG. Blake (2018). Surveying tropical birds is much harder than you think: a primer of best practices. Biotropica.

  J. Barlow, F. França, TA. Gardner, CC. Hicks, GD. Lennox, et al. E. Berenguer, L. Castello, EP. Economo, J. Ferreira, B. Guénard, C. Gontijo Leal, V. Isaac, AC. Lees, CL. Parr, SK. Wilson, PJ. Young, NAJ. Graham. (2018). The future of hyperdiverse tropical ecosystems. Nature. 559, pp.517-517.

  J. Ferreira, GD. Lennox, TA. Gardner, JR. Thomson, E. Berenguer, et al. AC. Lees, R. Mac Nally, LEOC. Aragão, SFB. Ferraz, J. Louzada, NG. Moura, VHF. Oliveira, R. Pardini, RRC. Solar, ICG. Vieira, J. Barlow. (2018). Carbon-focused conservation may fail to protect the most biodiverse tropical forests. Nature Climate Change. 8, pp.744-744.

  GM. Leighton, AC. Lees, ET. Miller (2018). The hairy–downy game revisited: an empirical test of the interspecific social dominance mimicry hypothesis. Animal Behaviour. 137, pp.141-148.

  CJ. McInerny, AJ. Musgrove, A. Stoddart, AHJ. Harrop, SP. Dudley, et al. D. Balmer, A. Brown, M. Collinson, P. French, J. Gilroy, A. Lees, R. Millington, A. Rowlands, J. Steele. (2018). The British List: A Checklist of Birds of Britain (9th edition). Ibis. 160(1), pp.190-240.

  MV. Cianciaruso, FL. Sobral, AC. Lees (2017). On dendrograms, ordinations and functional spaces: Methodo-logical choices or pitfalls?. Frontiers of Biogeography. 9(3),

  RD. Garrett, TA. Gardner, TF. Morello, S. Marchand, J. Barlow, et al. D. Ezzine de Blas, J. Ferreira, AC. Lees, L. Parry. (2017). Explaining the persistence of low income and environmentally degrading land uses in the Brazilian Amazon. Ecology and Society. 22(3),

  AC. Lees, NG. Moura (2017). Taxonomic, phylogenetic and functional diversity of an urban Amazonian avifauna. Urban Ecosystems. 20(5), pp.1019-1025.

  TP. Bregman, AC. Lees, HEA. MacGregor, B. Darski, NG. de Moura, et al. A. Aleixo, J. Barlow, JA. Tobias. (2016). Using avian functional traits to assess the impact of land-cover change on ecosystem processes linked to resilience in tropical forests. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 283(1844),

  FL. Sobral, AC. Lees, MV. Cianciaruso, M. Vila (2016). Introductions do not compensate for functional and phylogenetic losses following extinctions in insular bird assemblages. Ecology Letters. 19(9), pp.1091-1100.

  J. Barlow, GD. Lennox, J. Ferreira, E. Berenguer, AC. Lees, et al. RM. Nally, JR. Thomson, SFDB. Ferraz, J. Louzada, VHF. Oliveira, L. Parry, R. Ribeiro De Castro Solar, ICG. Vieira, LEOC. Aragaõ, RA. Begotti, RF. Braga, TM. Cardoso, RCDO. Jr, CM. Souza, NG. Moura, SS. Nunes, JV. Siqueira, R. Pardini, JM. Silveira, FZ. Vaz-De-Mello, RCS. Veiga, A. Venturieri, TA. Gardner. (2016). Anthropogenic disturbance in tropical forests can double biodiversity loss from deforestation. Nature. 535(7610), pp.144-147.

  AC. Lees (2016). Evidence for longitudinal migration by a “sedentary” Brazilian flycatcher, the Ash-throated Casiornis. Journal of Field Ornithology.

  LJ. Musher, AC. Lees, BJM. Almeida, RC. Rodrigues, CE. Fedrizzi, et al. JM. Holderbaum, D. Mizrahi. (2016). Curlew Sandpipers Calidris ferruginea in the western Atlantic: the first, second, and third Brazilian records from Ceará and Maranhão. Revista Brasileira de Ornitologia. 24(1), pp.62-67.

  NG. Moura, AC. Lees, A. Aleixo, J. Barlow, E. Berenguer, et al. J. Ferreira, R. Mac Nally, JR. Thomson, TA. Gardner. (2016). Idiosyncratic responses of Amazonian birds to primary forest disturbance. Oecologia. 180(3), pp.903-916.

  AC. Lees, CA. Peres, PM. Fearnside, M. Schneider, JAS. Zuanon (2016). Hydropower and the future of Amazonian biodiversity. Biodiversity and Conservation. 25(3), pp.451-466.

  ZJ. Ren, AK. Umble (2016). Water treatment: Recover wastewater resources locally. Nature. 529(7584), pp.25-25.

  AC. Lees, A. Balmford, B. Phalan (2016). Climate mitigation: UK budget cuts erode Paris promises. Nature. 529(7584), pp.25-25.

  VDQ. Piacentini, A. Aleixo, CE. Agne, GN. Maurício, JF. Pacheco, et al. GA. Bravo, GRR. Brito, LN. Naka, F. Olmos, S. Posso, LF. Silveira, GS. Betini, E. Carrano, I. Franz, AC. Lees, LM. Lima, D. Pioli, F. Schunck, FR. do Amaral, GA. Bencke, M. Cohn-Haft, LFA. Figueiredo, FC. Straube, E. Cesari. (2015). Annotated checklist of the birds of Brazil by the Brazilian ornithological records committee / Lista comentada das aves do Brasil pelo Comitê Brasileiro de Registros Ornitológicos. Revista Brasileira de Ornitologia. 23(2), pp.91-298.

  TP. Bregman, AC. Lees, N. Seddon, HEA. Macgregor, B. Darski, et al. A. Aleixo, MB. Bonsall, JA. Tobias. (2015). Species interactions regulate the collapse of biodiversity and ecosystem function in tropical forest fragments. Ecology. 96(10), pp.2692-2704.

  TP. Bregman, AC. Lees, N. Seddon, HEA. MacGregor, B. Darski, et al. A. Aleixo, MB. Bonsall, JA. Tobias. (2015). Species interactions regulate the collapse of biodiversity and ecosystem function in tropical forest fragments. ECOLOGY. 96(10), pp.2692-2704.

  RRDC. Solar, J. Barlow, J. Ferreira, E. Berenguer, AC. Lees, et al. JR. Thomson, J. Louzada, M. Maués, NG. Moura, VHF. Oliveira, JCM. Chaul, JH. Schoereder, ICG. Vieira, R. Mac Nally, TA. Gardner. (2015). How pervasive is biotic homogenization in human-modified tropical forest landscapes?. Ecol Lett. 18(10), pp.1108-1118.

  GM. Kirwan, JF. Pacheco, AC. Lees (2015). First documented record of the Sapphire Quail-Dove Geotrygon saphirina Bonaparte, 1855, in Brazil, an overlooked specimen from the Klages expedition to Amazonia. Revista Brasileira de Ornitologia. 23(3), pp.354-356.

  AP. Nunes, AC. Lees (2015). Revisão crítica sobre a avifauna da bacia do rio Sepotuba, Mato Grosso, Brasil. Ornitologia. 8(2), pp.72-80.

  MAB. Freitas, ICG. Vieira, ALKM. Albernaz, JLL. Magalhães, AC. Lees (2015). Floristic impoverishment of Amazonian floodplain forests managed for açaí fruit production. Forest Ecology and Management. 351, pp.20-27.

  VQ. de Piacentini, A. Aleixo, CE. Agne, GN. Maurício, JF. Pacheco, et al. GA. Bravo, GRR. Brito, LN. Naka, F. Olmos, S. Posso, LF. Silveira, GS. Betini, E. Carrano, I. Franz, AC. Lees, LM. Lima, D. Pioli, F. Schunck, FR. do Amaral, GA. Bencke, M. Cohn-Haft, LFA. Figueiredo, FC. Straube, E. Cesari. (2015). Annotated checklist of the birds of Brazil by the Brazilian Ornithological Records Committee / Lista comentada das aves do Brasil pelo Comitê Brasileiro de Registros Ornitológicos. Revista Brasileira de Ornitologia. 23(2), pp.91-298.

  AC. Lees, P. Bowler (2015). Water: A drought plan for biodiversity. Nature. 521(7552), pp.289-289.

  AC. Lees, NG. Moura, AS. De Almeida, ICG. Vieira (2015). Poor prospects for avian biodiversity in amazonian oil palm. PLoS ONE. 10(5),

  AC. Lees, SL. Pimm (2015). Species, extinct before we know them?. Curr Biol. 25(5), pp.R177-R180.

  AC. Lees, SL. Pimm (2015). Species, extinct before we know them?. Current Biology. 25(7), pp.969-969.

  AC. Lees (2015). Leave Brazil's Red List alone. NATURE. 518(7538), pp.167-167.

  AC. Lees (2015). Fisheries: Leave Brazil's Red List alone. Nature. 518(7538), pp.167-167.

  AC. Lees, RW. Martin (2015). Exposing hidden endemism in a Neotropical forest raptor using citizen science. Ibis. 157(1), pp.103-114.

  AC. Lees, NG. Moura, AS. De Almeida, ICG. Vieira (2014). Noteworthy ornithological records from the threatened campinas of the lower rio Tocantins, east Amazonian Brazil. Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club. 134(4), pp.247-258.

  SE. Ahmed, AC. Lees, NG. Moura, TA. Gardner, J. Barlow, et al. J. Ferreira, RM. Ewers. (2014). Road networks predict human influence on Amazonian bird communities. Proc Biol Sci. 281(1795), pp.20141742-20141742.

  J. Ferreira, LEOC. Aragão, J. Barlow, P. Barreto, E. Berenguer, et al. M. Bustamante, TA. Gardner, AC. Lees, A. Lima, J. Louzada, R. Pardini, L. Parry, CA. Peres, PS. Pompeu, M. Tabarelli, J. Zuanon. (2014). Environment and Development. Brazil's environmental leadership at risk. Science. 346(6210), pp.706-707.

  NG. Moura, AC. Lees, A. Aleixo, J. Barlow, SM. Dantas, et al. J. Ferreira, MDFC. Lima, TA. Gardner. (2014). Two hundred years of local avian extinctions in eastern Amazonia. Conserv Biol. 28(5), pp.1271-1281.

  I. Vieira, T. Gardner, J. Ferreira, A. Lees, J. Barlow (2014). Challenges of Governing Second-Growth Forests: A Case Study from the Brazilian Amazonian State of Pará. Forests. 5(7), pp.1737-1752.

  AC. Lees, LN. Naka, A. Aleixo, M. Cohn-Haft, VQ. de Piacentini, et al. MPD. Santos, LF. Silveira. (2014). Conducting rigorous avian inventories: Amazonian case studies and a roadmap for improvement. Revista Brasileira de Ornitologia. 22(2), pp.107-120.

  AC. Lees, JJ. Gilroy (2014). Vagrancy fails to predict colonization of oceanic islands. Global Ecology and Biogeography. 23(4), pp.405-413.

  AC. Lees, AF. Távora, M. Tavares, AO. Távora, D. Coutinho (2014). A second Sabine's Gull Xema sabini in Brazil. Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club. 134(2), pp.163-164.

  GA. Pereira, SDM. Dantas, LF. Silveira, SA. Roda, C. Albano, et al. FA. Sonntag, S. Leal, MC. Periquito, GB. Malacco, AC. Lees. (2014). Status of the globally threatened forest birds of northeast Brazil. Papéis Avulsos de Zoologia (São Paulo). 54(14), pp.177-194.

  NG. Moura, AC. Lees, CB. Andretti, BJW. Davis, RRC. Solar, et al. A. Aleixo, J. Barlow, J. Ferreira, TA. Gardner. (2013). Avian biodiversity in multiple-use landscapes of the Brazilian Amazon. Biological Conservation. 167, pp.339-348.

  AC. Lees (2013). First records of chestnutheaded tanager pyrrhocoma ruficeps from Goiás, central Brazil. Cotinga. 35, pp.130-131.

  BJ. Melo de Almeida, RC. Rodrigues, D. Mizrahi, AC. Lees (2013). A Lesser Black-backed Gull Larus fuscus in Maranhao: the second Brazilian record. REVISTA BRASILEIRA DE ORNITOLOGIA. 21(3), pp.213-216.

  TA. Gardner, J. Ferreira, J. Barlow, AC. Lees, L. Parry, et al. ICG. Vieira, E. Berenguer, R. Abramovay, A. Aleixo, C. Andretti, LEOC. Aragão, I. Araújo, WS. de Ávila, RD. Bardgett, M. Batistella, RA. Begotti, T. Beldini, DE. de Blas, RF. Braga, DDL. Braga, JG. de Brito, PB. de Camargo, F. Campos dos Santos, VC. de Oliveira, ACN. Cordeiro, TM. Cardoso, DR. de Carvalho, SA. Castelani, JCM. Chaul, CE. Cerri, FDA. Costa, CDF. da Costa, E. Coudel, AC. Coutinho, D. Cunha, Á. D'Antona, J. Dezincourt, K. Dias-Silva, M. Durigan, JCDM. Esquerdo, J. Feres, SFDB. Ferraz, AEDM. Ferreira, AC. Fiorini, LVF. da Silva, FS. Frazão, R. Garrett, ADS. Gomes, KDS. Gonçalves, JB. Guerrero, N. Hamada, RM. Hughes, DC. Igliori, EDC. Jesus, L. Juen, M. Junior, JMBDO. Junior, RCDO. Junior, CS. Junior, P. Kaufmann, V. Korasaki, CG. Leal, R. Leitão, N. Lima, MDFL. Almeida, R. Lourival, J. Louzada, RM. Nally, S. Marchand, MM. Maués, FMS. Moreira, C. Morsello, N. Moura, J. Nessimian, S. Nunes, VHF. Oliveira, R. Pardini, HC. Pereira, PS. Pompeu, CR. Ribas, F. Rossetti, FA. Schmidt, R. da Silva, RCVM. da Silva, TFMR. da Silva, J. Silveira, JV. Siqueira, TS. de Carvalho, RRC. Solar, NSH. Tancredi, JR. Thomson, PC. Torres, FZ. Vaz-de-Mello, RCS. Veiga, A. Venturieri, C. Viana, D. Weinhold, R. Zanetti, J. Zuanon. (2013). A social and ecological assessment of tropical land uses at multiple scales: the Sustainable Amazon Network. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 368(1624), pp.20130307-20130307.

  TA. Gardner, J. Ferreira, J. Barlow, AC. Lees, L. Parry, et al. ICG. Vieira, E. Berenguer, R. Abramovay, A. Aleixo, C. Andretti, LEOC. Aragão, I. Araújo, WS. de Ávila, RD. Bardgett, M. Batistella, RA. Begotti, T. Beldini, DE. de Blas, RF. Braga, DDL. Braga, JG. de Brito, PB. de Camargo, F. Campos dos Santos, VC. de Oliveira, ACN. Cordeiro, TM. Cardoso, DR. de Carvalho, SA. Castelani, JCM. Chaul, CE. Cerri, FDA. Costa, CDF. da Costa, E. Coudel, AC. Coutinho, D. Cunha, Á. D'Antona, J. Dezincourt, K. Dias-Silva, M. Durigan, JCDM. Esquerdo, J. Feres, SFDB. Ferraz, AEDM. Ferreira, AC. Fiorini, LVF. da Silva, FS. Frazão, R. Garrett, ADS. Gomes, KDS. Gonçalves, JB. Guerrero, N. Hamada, RM. Hughes, DC. Igliori, EDC. Jesus, L. Juen, M. Junior, JMB. de Oliveira Junior, RC. de Oliveira Junior, C. Souza Junior, P. Kaufmann, V. Korasaki, CG. Leal, R. Leitão, N. Lima, MDFL. Almeida, R. Lourival, J. Louzada, R. Mac Nally, S. Marchand, MM. Maués, FMS. Moreira, C. Morsello, N. Moura, J. Nessimian, S. Nunes, VHF. Oliveira, R. Pardini, HC. Pereira, PS. Pompeu, CR. Ribas, F. Rossetti, FA. Schmidt, R. da Silva, RCVM. da Silva, TFMR. da Silva, J. Silveira, JV. Siqueira, TS. de Carvalho, RRC. Solar, NSH. Tancredi, JR. Thomson, PC. Torres, FZ. Vaz-de-Mello, RCS. Veiga, A. Venturieri, C. Viana, D. Weinhold, R. Zanetti, J. Zuanon. (2013). A social and ecological assessment of tropical land uses at multiple scales: the Sustainable Amazon Network. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci. 368(1619), pp.20120166-20120166.

  DF. Dias, RP. Rocha, AC. Lees (2013). First documented record of the Ruff Philomachus pugnax (Scolopacidae) in Brazil. REVISTA BRASILEIRA DE ORNITOLOGIA. 21(2), pp.126-128.

  AC. Lees, ICG. Vieira (2013). Oil-palm concerns in Brazilian Amazon. NATURE. 497(7448), pp.188-188.

  AC. Lees, ICG. Vieira (2013). Forests: Oil-palm concerns in Brazilian Amazon. Nature. 497(7448), pp.188-188.

  AC. Lees, I. Newton, A. Balmford (2013). Pheasants, buzzards, and trophic cascades. Conservation Letters. 6(2), pp.141-144.

  AC. Lees, NG. de Moura, CB. Andretti, BJW. Davis, EV. Lopes, et al. LM. Pinto Henriques, A. Aleixo, J. Barlow, J. Ferreira, TA. Gardner. (2013). One hundred and thirty-five years of avifaunal surveys around Santarem, central Brazilian Amazon. REVISTA BRASILEIRA DE ORNITOLOGIA. 21(1), pp.16-57.

  AC. Lees, KJ. Zimmer, CA. Marantz, A. Whittaker, BJW. Davis, et al. BM. Whitney. (2013). Alta Floresta revisited: An updated review of the avifauna of the most intensively surveyed locality in south-central Amazonia. Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club. 133(3), pp.178-239.

  F. Castro, J. Castro, AR. Ferreira, MA. Crozariol, AC. Lees (2012). A first documented Brazilian record of Least Seedsnipe Thinocorus rumicivorus Eschscholtz, 1829 (Thinocoridae). REVISTA BRASILEIRA DE ORNITOLOGIA. 20(4), pp.455-457.

  TA. Gardner, ND. Burgess, N. Aguilar-Amuchastegui, J. Barlow, E. Berenguer, et al. T. Clements, F. Danielsen, J. Ferreira, W. Foden, V. Kapos, SM. Khan, AC. Lees, L. Parry, RM. Roman-Cuesta, CB. Schmitt, N. Strange, I. Theilade, ICG. Vieira. (2012). A framework for integrating biodiversity concerns into national REDD+ programmes. Biological Conservation. 154, pp.61-71.

  SU. Chowdhury, AC. Lees, PM. Thompson (2012). Status and distribution of the endangered Baer's Pochard Aythya baeri in Bangladesh. FORKTAIL. pp.57-61.

  J. Barlow, L. Parry, TA. Gardner, AC. Lees, CA. Peres (2012). Developing evidence-based arguments to assess the pristine nature of Amazonian forests. Biological Conservation. 152, pp.293-294.

  J. Barlow, TA. Gardner, AC. Lees, L. Parry, CA. Peres (2012). How pristine are tropical forests? An ecological perspective on the pre-Columbian human footprint in Amazonia and implications for contemporary conservation. Biological Conservation. 151(1), pp.45-49.

  RN. Biancalana, W. Nogueira, R. Bessa, D. Pioli, C. Albano, et al. AC. Lees. (2012). Range extensions and breeding biology observations of the Sooty Swift (Cypseloides fumigatus) in the states of Bahia, Goias, Minas Gerais and Tocantins. REVISTA BRASILEIRA DE ORNITOLOGIA. 20(2), pp.87-92.

  AC. Lees, NG. de Moura, A. Santana, A. Aleixo, J. Barlow, et al. E. Berenguer, J. Ferreira, TA. Gardner. (2012). Paragominas: a quantitative baseline inventory of an eastern Amazonian avifauna. REVISTA BRASILEIRA DE ORNITOLOGIA. 20(2), pp.93-118.

  JP. Bird, GM. Buchanan, AC. Lees, RP. Clay, PF. Develey, et al. I. Yépez, SHM. Butchart. (2012). Integrating spatially explicit habitat projections into extinction risk assessments: a reassessment of Amazonian avifauna incorporating projected deforestation. Diversity and Distributions. 18(3), pp.273-281.

  SP. Mahood, AC. Lees, CA. Peres (2012). Amazonian countryside habitats provide limited avian conservation value. Biodiversity and Conservation. 21(2), pp.385-405.

  AC. Lees (2011). Shades of grey: 'Eastern' Skylarks and extralimital subspecies identification. British Birds. 104(11), pp.660-666.

  AC. Lees, EA. VanderWerf (2011). First record of Blyth's Pipit Anthus godlewskii for Micronesia. Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club. 131(3), pp.212-217.

  AC. Lees, JP. Bird, SU. Chowdhury, RW. Martin (2011). Status of Red-throated Pipit Anthus cervinus in Bangladesh. FORKTAIL. pp.104-105.

  M. Korczak-Abshire, A. Lees, A. Jojczyk (2011). First documented record of barn swallow (Hirundo rustica) in the Antarctic. Polish Polar Research. 32(4), pp.355-360.

  CA. Peres, TA. Gardner, J. Barlow, J. Zuanon, F. Michalski, et al. AC. Lees, ICG. Vieira, FMS. Moreira, KJ. Feeley. (2010). Biodiversity conservation in human-modified Amazonian forest landscapes. Biological Conservation. 143(10), pp.2314-2327.

  AC. Lees, CA. Peres (2010). Habitat and Life History Determinants of Antbird Occurrence in Variable‐Sized Amazonian Forest Fragments. Biotropica. 42(5), pp.614-621.

  JP. Bird, AC. Lees, SU. Chowdhury, R. Martin, EU. Haque (2010). A survey of the Critically Endangered Spoon-billed Sandpiper Eurynorhynchus pygmeus in Bangladesh and key future research and conservation recommendations. FORKTAIL. pp.1-8.

  AC. Lees, CA. Peres (2009). Gap‐crossing movements predict species occupancy in Amazonian forest fragments. Oikos. 118(2), pp.280-290.

  CT. Trinca, SF. Ferrari, AC. Lees (2008). Curiosity killed the bird: arbitrary hunting of harpy eagles (Harpia harpyja) on an agricultural frontier in southern Brazilian Amazonia. Cotinga. 30, pp.12-15.

  AC. LEES, DJ. BELL (2008). A conservation paradox for the 21st century: the European wild rabbitOryctolagus cuniculus, an invasive alien and an endangered native species. Mammal Review. 38(4), pp.304-320.

  AC. Lees, CA. Peres (2008). Conservation value of remnant riparian forest corridors of varying quality for amazonian birds and mammals. Conserv Biol. 22(2), pp.439-449.

  AC. Lees, CA. Peres (2008). Avian life‐history determinants of local extinction risk in a hyper‐fragmented neotropical forest landscape. Animal Conservation. 11(2), pp.128-137.

  AC. Lees (2008). A range extension for Curl-crested Aracari (Pteroglossus beauharnaesii): implications for avian contact zones in central Amazonia. Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club. 128(1), pp.53-54.

  L. Swift, PR. Hunter, AC. Lees, DJ. Bell (2007). Wildlife Trade and the Emergence of Infectious Diseases. EcoHealth. 4(1), pp.25-30.

  AC. Lees, CA. Peres (2006). Rapid avifaunal collapse along the Amazonian deforestation frontier. Biological Conservation. 133(2), pp.198-211.

  IA. MCLAREN, AC. LEES, C. FIELD, KJ. COLLINS (2006). Origins and characteristics of Nearctic landbirds in Britain and Ireland in autumn: a statistical analysis. Ibis. 148(4), pp.707-726.

  AC. Lees, RD. Moores (2006). Identification and status of Dunn's Lark in northwest Africa. British Birds. 99(9), pp.482-484.

  AC. Lees, JJ. Gilroy (2004). Pectoral sandpipers in Europe: Vagrancy patterns and the influx of 2003. British Birds. 97(12), pp.638-646.

  JJ. Gilroy, AC. Lees (2003). Vagrancy theories: Are autumn vagrants really reverse migrants?. British Birds. 96(9), pp.427-438.

• Chapters in books

  A. Lees (2022). Chapter 31: Witness to Extinction. In: Low-Carbon Birding. Pelagic Publishing Ltd,

  J. Barlow, AC. Lees, P. Sist, R. Almeida, C. Arantes, et al. D. Armenteras, E. Berenguer, P. Caron, F. Cuesta, C. Rodrigues da Costa Doria, J. Ferreira, A. Flecker, S. Heilpern, M. Kalamandeen, N. Nascimento, M. Peña-Claros, C. Piponiot Laroche, P. Santos Pompeu, C. Souza, JF. Valentim. (2022). Capítulo 27: Medidas de conservación para contrarrestar las principales amenazas a la biodiversidad Amazónica. Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN),

  E. Berenguer, D. Armenteras, AC. Lees, CC. Smith, P. Fearnside, et al. N. Nascimento, A. Alencar, C. Almeida, LEO. Aragão, J. Barlow, B. Bilbao, PM. Brando, P. Bynoe, M. Finer, BM. Flores, CN. Jenkins, CHL. Silva Junior, C. Souza, R. García-Villacorta. (2022). Capítulo 19: Impulsores e impactos ecológicos de la deforestación y la degradación forestal. Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN),

  A. Lees (2020). 5 Common Scoter Melanitta nigra. In: RED SIXTY SEVEN..

  J. Ferreira, J. Barlow, L. Parry, AC. Lees, ICG. Vieira, et al. TA. Gardner. (2014). Avaliação da sustentabilidade social e ecológica dos usos da terra na Amazônia em múltiplas escalas: Rede Amazônia Sustentável. ICG. Vieira, PM. Toledo, RAJ. Santos. In: Avaliação da sustentabilidade social e ecológica dos usos da terra na Amazônia em múltiplas escalas: Rede Amazônia Sustentável. Garamond, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, pp.433-456.

  AC. Lees (2013). Valor de conservação de corredores remanescentes de qualidade variável de florestas ripárias para as aves e mamíferos Amazônicos. CA. Peres, J. Barlow, TA. Gardner, ICG. Vieira. In: Conservação da biodiversidade em paisagens florestais antropizadas do Brasil.. Fundação O Boticário / Editora da Universidade Federal do Paraná,

  AC. Lees, JG. Gilroy (2009). Vagrancy Mechanisms in Passerines and Near-Passerines. In: Rare Birds, Where and When: An analysis of status and distribution in Britain and Ireland. Volume 1: sandgrouse to New World orioles..

• Reports

Invited papers

Selected recent invited presentations

Lees, A.C. 2019. Diversity in avian mimicry. Invited Speaker, British Ornithologists' Club Annual General Meeting. Natural History Museum, London 26th October 2019.

Lees, A.C. 2019. Plenary: Extinções recentes de aves no Brasil: o que nós sabemos e o que precisamos saber? XXVI Congresso Brasileiro de Ornitologia, Universidade Vila Velha, Brazil, 11 July 2019.

Lees, A. C. 2019 Invited seminar: Bridging avian biodiversity shortfalls in the Neotropics. Oxford Centre for Tropical Forests, Oxford University 23 May 2019.

Lees, A.C. 2016. Bridging shortfalls in Brazilian ornithology. Invited Speaker, British Ornithologists' Club Annual General Meeting. Natural History Museum, London 17th September 2016.

Lees, A.C. 2016. Biodiversity conservation and forest policy in the Brazilian Amazon. 'Amazonia in the Anthropocene' Norwegian University of Life Sciences, As, Norway, 20th May 2016.

Lees, A.C. 2015. Land Use Change and The Future of the Amazon. Princeton University's Program in Science, Technology and Environmental Policy seminar series. November 16th, 2015 Princeton University, USA.

Lees, A.C. 2015. ‘Young investigator keynote’: Pervasive impacts of land-use change on the Neotropical avifauna. Neotropical Ornithology Congress in Manaus, Brazil.

Invited roundtable discussions

Lees, A.C. 2011. Biodiversidade das Aves da Amazônia. Invited speaker on a 'Mesa Redonda' (Round-table) with A. Aleixo, M. Cohn-Haft & L. Fabio Silveira at the XVIII Congresso Brasileiro de Ornitologia, Cuiaba.

Conference organisation

Symposium 31: opportunities and challenges facing conservation in the Brazilian Amazon: human and ecological dimensions. Association of Tropical Biology Congress, Bonito, Brazil (June 2012)

Expert reviewer for journals and publishers

Publons reviewer profile: https://publons.com/researcher/1186712/alexander-charles-lees/peer-review/

I regularly review scientific manuscripts (average three per month) for the following journals: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, Current Biology, Biological Reviews, Nature Ecology and Evolution, Trends in Ecology and Evolution, Diversity and Distributions, Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, Methods in Ecology and Evolution, Conservation Biology, Scientific Reports, Journal of Animal Ecology, Ecological Applications, Oikos, Ecological Indicators, Journal of Applied Ecology, PLOS One, Perspectives in Ecology and Evolution. Ecosphere, Biological Conservation, Evolutionary Ecology, Forest Ecology and Management, Landscape Ecology, Journal of Tropical Ecology, Biodiversity and Conservation, Systematics and Biodiversity, Mammal Review, Ibis, Biotropica, Oryx, Condor, Ostrich, Peer-J, Acta Oecologia, Polar Biology, Journal of Field Ornithology, Applied Geography, Journal of Arid Environments, Bird Conservation International, Zootaxa, Ornitholgy Research, Revista Brasileira de Ornitologia, Cotinga, Tropical Conservation Science, Zoologia, Ardeola, Boletim do Museu Paraense Emílio Goeldi Ciências Naturais and the Bulletin of the British Ornithologist’s Club.

Grants

Project title BIOCLIMATE: BIOdiversity responses to CLIMAte and land-uses change in Tropical forest Ecosystems

Co-investigator

Fondation BNP Paribas 

€889,795

Project title: Identifying priority biodiversity research and capacity building needs to inform sustainable management of South American dry forest resources

Project Partner Co-I.

Co-investigators: Stuart Marsden et al.

Newton Fund (London, United Kingdom) 2018-07 to 2018-07 | Grant

Part of Grant: 359523202

Project title: AFIRE: Assessing ENSO-induced Fire Impacts in tropical Rainforest Ecosystems
Project Partner Co-I. Funding received whilst at Cornell
Co-investigators: Jos Barlow, Yadvinder Mahi et al.
Funding body: NERC, UK
Sum requested: £298,151
Submission date: April 2016

Project title: Biodiversity and ecosystem functioning in degraded and recovering Amazonian and Atlantic Forests
Co-I. Funding received whilst at MPEG
Co-investigators: Jos Barlow, Carlos Joly, 15 others
Funding body: São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP Sao Paulo, Brazil)
Sum requested: £5M
Submission date: August 2013

Project title: Ecological consequences of biofuel expansion in the Brazilian Amazon 2012-11 to 2015-10 | Grant
P-I. Funding received whilst at MPEG
Co-investigators: Ima Vieira, MPEG
Funding body: Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (Brasilia, Brazil)
Sum requested: £14,622
Submission date: November 2011

Project title: Trade-offs between biodiversity conservation, ecosystem service provision and economic development in tropical forests 

Co-I. Funding received whilst at UEA

Co-investigators: Toby Gardner (Cambridge University), Jos Barlow (Lancaster University), Joice Ferreira (EMBRAPA)
Funding body: TNC Brasil (Belém, Brazil)
Sum requested: £10,000
Submission date: January 2010

Projects and initiatives

• Member of the steering committee of the Sustainable Amazon Network (Rede Amazonia Sustentável; RAS, www.redeamazoniasustentavel.org), a research network of more than 30 institutes involved in assessing land sustainability in the Brazilian Amazon. (June 2010 – present)
• ECOFOR (Biodiversity and Ecosystem Functioning in Degraded and Recovering Amazonian and Atlantic Forests) http://ecofor.hmtf.info/ Project Partner (April 2013 – April 2018)

Exhibitions

'Lost Birds' Half Earth Day -  Manchester Science Festival 2018 at Manchester Museum, Monday 22 October 2018

Consultancy and advisory roles

I have extensive experience of ecological consultancy work including avian vantage point surveys, breeding and wintering bird surveys, pelagic bird surveys using COWRIE methodology, and have also undertaken post-construction botanical surveys of the Gllwern to Abergavenny Gas Pipeline and at-sea censuses of Common Scoter (Melanitta nigra) populations in the Irish Sea.

I acted as editor for the popular bird book McGeehan & Wyllie (2013) ‘Birds Through Irish Eyes’ The Collins Press, and am currently producing the avian distribution maps for Zimmer & Whittaker (in press) ‘Bird of Brazil’, Princeton University Press. I have a strong interest in wildlife photography and sound recording for scientific purposes and have many images published in journals (including in the journal Science), in several books e.g. Kirwan & Green (2011) Cotingas and Manakins, Helm; and Gorman (2014) Woodpeckers of the World, Helm, as well as extensively online (e.g. Neotropical Birds Online, BBC News) where for example I have images of over 1000 Brazilian species archived on WikiAves. I have several recordings published in bird sound compilations e.g. Marantz & Zimmer (2006) Bird Voices of Alta Floresta and Southeastern Amazonian Brazil. Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology, USA and Moore, Krabbe & Jahn (2013) Bird Sounds of Ecuador, A Comprehensive Collection, in addition to recordings of over 450 bird species archived online at http://xeno-canto.org/.

Community, charity and NGO links

1. UNITED NATIONS Science Panel for the Amazon; I am one of 250 scientists (only 9 from the UK) who make up this international panel convened by the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network which released its inaugural report during COP-26 of which I was a co-author on four chapters.

2. IUCN Species Survival Commission Red List Authority; I am a member of this group which guides Red Listing efforts to rank bird conservation priority-setting, a key technique to securing the future of tropical wildlife by conferring protected status to threatened species (e.g. Lees 2015 Nature).

3. Senior evaluator for the Brazilian government’s Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation; participating in Red Listing exercises. I am a co-author on 23 species accounts in the Brazilian Red List book Livro Vermelho da Fauna Brasileira Ameaçada de Extinção Volume III – Aves.

4. British Ornithologists Union Records Committee; (2017-) the BOURC is formed of ten individuals responsible for maintaining the British List, the official list of birds recorded in Britain

5. Manchester Biodiversity Action Group (2019-) responsible for delivery of the Manchester Biodiversity Action Plan with representatives from other local universities, the city council and eNGOS.

6. Comitê Brasileiro de Registros Ornitológicos (2015 – 2021) I was the only member of this committee - responsible for maintaining the official list of birds recorded in Brazil - from outside of South America. 

7. Multi-regional reviewer for the eBird initiative, the largest global biodiversity citizen science project and review coordinator for the UK (July 2015 – present)

Impact and influence on policy

The bulk of my work over the past 6 years has explored the biodiversity and ecosystem service value of human-modified tropical forests. This has been tailored to answering questions of high policy relevance and provided tangible impacts to underpin an Impact Case Study ‘Protecting threatened birds and their habitats across the tropics’ for Unit of Assessment: 7. For example, my work on the biodiversity value of secondary forests was used to establish the first legislation defining successional stages of second-growth forests for any Amazonian state (IN02. 26/02/2014). My work directly influenced commitments by the State of Pará, Brazil to increase secondary forest cover to 5.65 Mha by 2030 to reach net zero climate targets. This is almost half of the target area for all of Brazil under its Nationally Determined Contributions from the Paris agreement of the UNFCCC. An official state decree enshrines the commitment in state law and uses three of my publications in its calculations of carbon accumulation. I was selected among 28 internationally experts to participate in and co-author an innovative study (Bolam et al. 2020) to evaluate the contribution of conservation interventions to prevent global extinction of 39 bird species. These findings were included in Global Biodiversity Outlook 5, the flagship periodic report of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).

I have also participated extensively by invitation in both Brazilian (with the Brazilian government’s Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation) and international (for Birdlife International) Red Listing initiatives and conservation prioritizing exercises that have led to a complete reappraisal of the number of threatened species in the Neotropics, particularly Amazonia (see e.g. Bird, Buchanan, Lees et al. 2011, Div. Dist.)

Media appearances or involvement

Selected online news stories:

1. RSPB: Bitterns make booming recovery in UK wetlands BBC News
2. Bird Feeders Are Good for Some Species—But Possibly Bad for Others Scientific American 
3. Why did birds fall from sky in Mexico? Probably a predator, experts say The Guardian
4. Farmers could be paid for post-Brexit 'rewilding' land changes BBC News
5. BIGGEST SHAKE-UP IN 50 YEARS REWARDS PLANTING TREES AND SAVING WETLANDS - BUT NFU FEARS IT'LL HIT FOOD PRODUCTION Daily Mail
6. Lost Steller's sea eagle that is native to Asia is spotted in Massachusetts Daily Mail
7. A lost eagle from Asia has been traveling around North America for more than a year NPR
8. Fires in Brazil's wetlands killed almost 17 million animals in 2020 New Scientist
9. Brazil wildfires killed an estimated 17 million animals BBC News
10. Thousands of Miles Away From Home, This Steller’s Sea Eagle Couldn’t Be Any More Lost Smithsonian Magazine
11. Kjempehavørn forvillet seg til feil kontinent Forskning.no
12. This Eagle Is Very, Very Lost New York Times
13. From Liverpool Bay, a flock of mysterious sea birds disappears into the night Liverpool Post
14. Should we stop feeding garden birds? Daily Telegraph
15. Does feeding garden birds do more harm than good? BBC News
16. Nourrir les oiseaux à sa fenêtre n'est pas forcément une bonne idée Slate Fr
17. Plataforma apresenta dados inéditos sobre a biodiversidade brasileira Mongabay Brasil
18. Royal family urged to lead rewilding efforts and transform estates The Guardian
19. Estudo aumenta esperança de encontrar ave "perdida" da Mata Atlântica Globo
20. Extinction denialism is a worrying new anti-science movement New Scientist
21. Land could be worth more left to nature than when farmed, study finds The Guardian
22. Amazon’s Belo Monte dam cuts Xingu River flow 85%; a crime, Indigenous say Mongabay
23. You don't need to know nature to love it, study shows Birdguides
24. Birds' genetic secrets revealed in global DNA study BBC News website
25. Rewild to mitigate the climate crisis, urge leading scientists The Guardian
26. ‘Extinction Denialism': How to fight a growing anti-science movement The Independent
27. 'We’ve covered huge swathes of the UK in tarmac': how roads affect birds The Guardian
28. Conservation Scientists Confront Extinction Denial Wyoming Public Media
29. Biologists warn ‘extinction denial’ is the latest anti-science conspiracy theory Mongabay
30. The controversial grouse moor burning season in the Peak District Derbyshire Life
31. Amazon under threat: Fires, loggers and now virus BBC News website
32. Want some good nature news? Stork chicks are hatching in the UK for the first time in 600 years Metro
33. Look up, look down: experts urge us to take a closer look at the concrete jungle The Guardian
34. Extinct in the Wild: can these 5 bird species come back from captivity? Birdlife International
35. Defra challenged over 'unlawful' release of 57m game birds in UK The Guardian
36. Starving and shot orangutan returned to wild as ‘world’s most wildlife-rich areas being destroyed’ The Independent
37. Loss of EU protections could imperil UK hedgehogs, report says The Guardian
38. What about the animals caught in the Amazon rainforest fires? BBC News website
39. BBC to pull parts of David Attenborough documentary after animal sounds mix-up The Independent
40. Por que não é correto comparar os incêndios na Amazônia aos que ocorrem na Austrália BBC Brasil
41. Hundreds of animal species face 'imminent' EXTINCTION if we don't take urgent action, scientists warn Mirror Online
42. Time is running out for the tropics Daily Mail
43. National Trust should be radical, says Hilary McGrady BBC News website
44. What wildlife scientists and nature lovers can learn from Pokémon Go: Washington Post
45. Amazon fires: Humans make rainforest more flammable: BBC
46. Visualizing the impacts of human disturbance on tropical forest biodiversity Mongabay
47. Amazon rainforest creatures under THREAT from man-induced destruction Express
48. Fim do desmatamento não salvará a floresta amazônica EL PAÍS
49. Massive effort to save the Amazon is failing even in ‘protected’ areas Washington Post
50. Dammed to hell: Hydropower in the Amazon basin is threatening hundreds of rare and unique species with extinction Daily Mail
51. Why more than 200 new dams will be a disaster for the Amazon: Washington Post
52. Palm oil plantations used to ‘reforest’ parts of Brazil despite being wildlife deserts: Mongabay
53. Desaparecimento de aves TV Cultura
54. Em dois séculos, 47 espécies de aves podem ter sido extintas em Belém: G1 Globo News
55. Scientists highlight the critical role of birds in forest regeneration The Ecologist

Other news stories (print only)

1. Food Fighters BBC Wildlife October 2021
2. FIRE IN THE HILLS BBC Country File Magazine October 2020
3. Flock of tweeting twitchers shows how common scoter flies home The Times April 6 2020
4. OUR PLANET’S LUNGS ARE ON FIRE BBC Wildlife Magazine December 2019

Podcasts

1. Vagrancy WICN Public Radio
2. Vagrancy in Birds The Urban Birder
3. Nuance in Nature Into the Wild Podcasts
4. Provisioning: killing with kindness? Off The Leash Podcasts
5. Garden bird feeding BBC Inside Science
6. Festival of Debate Peak District - Nature Impoverished
7. Ghosts of the Landscape Derbyshire Wildlife Trust
   
8. Conservation vs Animal Rights Activism? Off The Leash Podcasts
9. Extinction Denial Newstalk
10. The Amazon Rainforest with Alex Lees Tommy's Outdoors
11. Storks: a cultural history The Naked Scientists
12. Protect the planet Metcast

MMU Media

1. Sustainability – No Excuses Part 2 MetMUnch
2. PROTECTING THE PLANET Met Magazine

News articles for the Conservation.com

1. Counting mammals, birds and dung beetles could be vital for saving the Amazon Filipe França, Alexander C. Lees, Jos Barlow, Yves Bas
2. Stork chicks hatch in UK for first time in 600 years – why that’s great news for British wildlife Alexander Lees & Oliver Metcalf 
3. Amazon fires explained: what are they, why are they so damaging, and how can we stop them? Jos Barlow & Alexander Lees
4. Peru ends era of ‘roadless wilderness’ in its Amazon rainforests Alexander Lees
5. Only local Amazonians can bring true sustainable development to their forest Jos Barlow, Alexander Lees, Erika Berenguer, James A. Fraser & Joice Ferreira
6. Without birds, tropical forests won’t bounce back from deforestation Alexander Lees
7. Will we soon see another wave of bird extinctions in the Americas? Alexander Lees

Editorials

1. Feeding birds in our gardens is a joy – but it may be harming weaker species The Guardian

Prizes and awards

British Science Association Media Fellow (2017-2018)

Expert reviewer for external funding bodies

Newton Fund | British Council

UKRI Future Leaders Fellowships | Medical Research Council

NERC Independent Research Fellowships

Visiting and honorary positions

Lab Associate, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Cornell University

Research Associate, Museu Paraense Emílio Goeldi 

Editorial board membership

• Subject Editor Biotropica (August 2014 – October 2020) 
• Section Editor Brazilian Journal of Ornithology (October 2011 – July 2017)
• Associate Editor, Boletim do Museu Paraense Emílio Goeldi Ciências Naturais. (December 2011 – July 2015)
• Associate Editor Biota Neotropica. (January 2012 – December 2015)
• Editorial Committee member Neotropical Birding (July 2012 – present)

Membership of professional associations

Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation

British Ornithologist's Union

American Ornithologist's Union