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- About us
https://webcdn.mmu.ac.uk/profiles/img/profile-images/Christian-Devenish-crop-145x145-5c530c8559a71.png
I am a post-doctorate researcher at Manchester Metropolitan University working in spatial ecology, particularly, describing species' distributions and patterns of abundance, and in conservation planning. To achieve this, I combine data from field work (some collected in the traditional way, but also from citizen science initiatives and automated recorders) with remote sensed data from satellites. I have worked extensively in the Neotropics as well as recent work in the UK, for example, modelling geese distributions in northwest UK to inform planning applications. My work has a strong relevance to biodiversity conservation and sustainable development; I spent several years working in the conservation sector before doing my PhD.
I teach mainly on GIS and statistics units, with a lot of practical pc lab work in R, ArcGIS, and QGIS. My units include Spatial Methods (1st Year), Research Design and Analysis (2nd Year), GIS and Earth Observation (3rd Year), Statistics and Research Design (MSc), Species Distribution Modelling (MSc).
I got my undergraduate degree from the University of Manchester, in Environmental Biology. I took at post-graduate certificate in Conservation Biology before going on to do a PhD at Manchester Metropolitan University part time while working in conservation and sustainable development NGOs in Ecuador and Peru.
I have taught undergraduate and post-graduate units at MMU. I have also taught on an international MSc course run by the Spanish Research Council (CSIC) and the Universidad Internacional Menéndez Pelayo, in Quito, Ecuador. I have run several R courses, for example, at the Center for Environmental Sustainability & Postgraduate School, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, Lima (2014), Ecuadorian Ornithological Conference (2018) and at Manchester Metropolitan University (2015-2019).
Fluent written and spoken Spanish
My research relates to estimating species’ occurrences and abundances, incorporating statistical modelling and spatial analysis to establish patterns of occurrence, range limits, and abundance across species’ ranges and relationships with environmental factors. My research has strong applications to conservation, such as red listing and priority area establishment, especially with globally threatened species. Other conservation applications relate to effects of habitat type and land-use change on populations, protected area creation and strategies for single species recovery.
C. Devenish, D. Díaz, R. Clay, I. Davidson, I. Yépez (2009). Important Bird Areas AMERICAS - Priority sites for biodiversity conservation. BirdLife International.
R. Biddle, I. Solis-Ponce, M. Jones, S. Marsden, M. Pilgrim, et al. C. Devenish. (2021). The value of local community knowledge in species distribution modelling for a threatened Neotropical parrot. Biodiversity and Conservation. 30(6), pp.1803-1823.
C. Devenish, E. Nuñez Cortez, G. Buchanan, GR. Smith, SJ. Marsden (2020). Estimating ecological metrics for holistic conservation management in a biodiverse but information‐poor tropical region. Conservation Science and Practice. 2(2),
C. Devenish (2015). Biodiversity conservation: the impacts of UK university research. Environmental Scientist. 24, pp.13-21.
J. Ramirez-Villegas, F. Cuesta, C. Devenish, M. Peralvo, A. Jarvis, et al. CA. Arnillas. (2014). Using species distributions models for designing conservation strategies of Tropical Andean biodiversity under climate change. Journal for Nature Conservation. 22(5), pp.391-404.
M. Saravia, C. Devenish, B. De Bièvre, M. Peralvo (2013). CONDESAN: Better Knowledge, Better Decisions—Supporting Sustainable Andean Mountains Development. Mountain Research and Development. 33(3), pp.339-342.
C. Devenish, AM. Franco Maya (2009). Important Bird Areas of the Neotropics: Colombia. Neotropical Birding. 4, pp.4-11.
D. Cadena, C. Devenish, N. Silva (2002). First Observations on the Nesting Behavior of the Colombian Mountain-Grackle (Macroagelaius Subalaris), a Probable Cooperative Breeder. Ornitologia Neotropical. 13, pp.301-305.
I led the organisation of the Northwest Universities R Day (October 2018) - a one day conference with key note talks, flash talks, panel and workshops on research with R.
I coordinated the Academic Programme at the Society for Ecological Restoration Conference (SER2015) in Manchester.
I coordinated the thematic programme of the Mountain Pavilion at Rio+20, in Brazil (2012) - 11 days of side events, thematic conferences, posters, workshops, multimedia presentations and high-level meetings showcasing work to promote sustainable development in mountain regions.