Ben Secker

Nice to see our new paper published open access in @btobirds.bsky.social Ringing and Migration! We describe how Willow Tits were more likely to persist in woodlands further away from major roads compared to those where they had been lost in the declining Dearne Valley population.

We're hiring! 🚨 PDRA at MMU on our NERC project, using AI for depth estimation and 3D reconstruction from camera traps. With @chesterzoosci.bsky.social and @mpi-eva-leipzig.bsky.social Seeking computer vision/ML expertise from computational or biological backgrounds! Details: shorturl.at/YoH00

Job Alert! 🐦🎧🚁 We are seeking a #Postdoc in #Bioacoustics to join our EU-funded project investigating the impact of #Drones on #Birds. Position: 18 months (expected start Feb/Mar 27) Deadline: November 3rd University of Salford, UK @salforduni.bsky.social jobs.salford.ac.uk/en/sites/CX_...

Funded 3.5 year PhD🎺 The effects of gamebird release and management on the lowland ecosystems of S England Lots of fieldwork. A robust and resilient student is required. Focus on reptiles and ecto-parasites Any Qs, please DM or email me Please RT www.findaphd.com/phds/project...

Finally getting round to uploading a bunch of Willow Tit recordings to Xeno-canto. Plenty of interesting ones in there, including begging calls (adult female and juvs), flight calls, the well known song and alarm calls and much more! xeno-canto.org/contributor/...

“Contact with these peoples can lead to their extinction in days.” --Indigenous leader Beto Marubo on the dangers posed by social media influencers who exploit images of isolated Indigenous peoples as click-bait. www.theguardian.com/world/2026/s...

New job alert🪶 Research assistant to support research on Willow Tit demographics. Must have a BTO ringing licence at C level or above Location: Midlands and North of England Duration: Oct-Nov 2026 Deadline: This Wednesday Sept 9th Apply here: app.vacancy-filler.co.uk/salescrm/Car... 📷Ben Andrew

Sometimes the study species make it too easy 😎#ECBB2026

The 16th meeting of the European Ornithologist's Union is in Brno, Czech Republic! 🪶 📅 | 23 - 27 August 2027 | www.eou27.cz We have a fantastic programme taking shape, with plenary speakers and call for symposia to be announced soon. See you in Brno! #EOU27 #Ornithology #Ecology #Evolution

This is the coverage of Arday **just in the Telegraph** in the UK. This is only the first four pages of results, just in one outlet.

Oh no. This whole story (and death) was rooted in just awful racism. There are unfortunately plenty of white academics who do shoddy work and aren’t hounded to death. It was such a non-story and the right-wing media turned it into a racist manhunt.

MMU PhD student @bensecker.bsky.social is working to understand drivers of Willow tit decline in the UK:

How do endocrine-disrupting chemicals in our waterways impact the fitness of animals, like these young Sand Martins, that rely on prey from these sources? @sbac-manmetuni.bsky.social PhD student Jenny Darby is tackling this question, in a project funded by @songbirdsurvival.bsky.social

Sky News appears to be suffering from a strong irony deficiency… #climatecrisis

Abstracts are open for the BOU Avian Disease Ecology conference (6-8th April 2027, Nottingham, UK). Submit here (deadline July 31st): tinyurl.com/hf2hzf4p Reg fees to be released soon - but you can get an idea of rough costs from the BOU 2026 conference: tinyurl.com/3udbz3c5 Fab line up! 🦠🦜🦠🐦‍⬛🦠

Our new paper led by Jenny Darby is the first to test the acoustic niche hypothesis in human-modified tropical forests - logged and recently burned forests had significantly higher rates of avian vocalisation overlap... nsojournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/... #Ornithology

What’s the trouble with noisy neighbours? Come check it out at Animal Behavior Live 2026! We are delighted to announce Dr. Sue Anne Zollinger (Manchester Metropolitan University, UK) as our second plenary speaker at Animal Behaviour Live 2026!🤩 Free registration here: ablaoc.sciencesconf.org

Mental experiment: what would be the political reaction in Europe if 10000 Europeans were killed within a week by a terrorist oragnisation? How can the climate and ecosystems crisis still be treated as a non-issue, a niche concern, or nice to have?

Four juvenile Willow Tits colour ringed this morning at Wigan Flashes LNR, likely all part of the same brood. They should be dispersing soon, so fingers crossed for some follow up sightings, and maybe even nest finding next year… #UKBirding

The last Willow Tit nest of the season now fledged, successfully protected from Great Spotted Woodpecker predation. No GSW predation in protected nests this year, in stark contrast to 100% predation rate by GSW in unprotected nests. Very promising results.

Check out this wonderful guest blog post on Willow tit conservation by our own MMU PhD student @bensecker.bsky.social for @songbirdsurvival.bsky.social www.songbird-survival.org.uk/post/guest-b...

When reality surpasses fiction! Top: fictional forecast for August 2050, broadcast by French TV in 2014 to warn about the consequences of global warming. Bottom: Real French forecast for yesterday, June 22, 2026.

After the completion of the bulk of Willow Tit fieldwork for the season, nice to have a change of scene helping out with a friend and fellow PhD student’s project on Sand Martins. Gorgeous birds, also joined by a few friends… #UKBirding

Probably the most stable stronghold of Willow Tits remaining in the northwest and a vital source population for surrounding areas. Sadly at least two traditional territories lost to urban development in the last couple of years, hoping AB can advocate for more robust legal protection for WTs…

Over several days, a male Great Spotted Woodpecker has spent more than 8 minutes trying to open up this protected Willow Tit nest. No way into this cavity! Protective mesh guard holding strong.

The last few days in the nest are a dangerous time for Willow Tit nestlings, their constant loud begging calls giving away their location. On this occasion they attracted the attention of a Tawny Owl, which tried its luck as one of the nestlings was calling from the entrance. This was a close call!

Anyone blood sampling birds in the UK/Europe for plasma protein analysis? Need some advice on collection tubes to buy (and suppliers) if anyone has experience in that! #ornithology #molecularecology

This male Willow Tit is a Superdad! Last year he permanently injured his leg fighting off a GSW when his nestlings were about to fledge. It’s been wonderful to follow him this year all season, now caring for his 7 nestlings almost ready to fledge. Good luck to him and his family!

Lesson in rewilding from an abandoned field in Carmarthenshire - Willow, Oak, Hawthorn, Bramble racing through the grasses. No habitat management plan, no livestock, no fences, no cost. Willow Tit singing at the bottom of the field. #EarthDay

This year @birdsinwales.bsky.social kindly awarded us a grant to purchase trail camera equipment. @naturespy.bsky.social have also generously loaned us trail cameras. These cameras allow us to monitor Willow Tit nests at a landscape scale, gathering important data around the clock.

Managed to spend a few hours this week watching a pair of our Willow Tits bringing a variety of food items to the nest. Mainly caterpillars, but also many spiders, aphids and craneflies. A balanced diet keeping the full brood healthy so far, and should be fledging in the next few days... #UKBirding

Extensive, unmanaged woodland habitats, abundant deadwood and understorey layer, good connectivity at a landscape scale, a paradise for Willow Tits. But there’s trouble in paradise. Another territory checked just a day too late. GSW predation hitting hard in Carmarthenshire.

For 7 days, a pair of Great Spotted Woodpecker kept a close eye on this Willow Tit nest. The male GSW took 3 minutes to destroy it. The clutch of 9 eggs were left by the GSW and abandoned by the Willow Tits. It’s touch and go if the WTs have a last nesting attempt this season…

Sharing, without comment, British newspapers’ depictions of the only Jewish person currently leading a UK political party . Times. Mail. Telegraph. Sun.

Blue Tits are a problem for Willow Tits, often taking over WT nest cavities by aggressive eviction. With 6 WT eggs inside, these BTs spent an entire day removing nesting material! The second day was full on warfare, ending in successful WTs. Now a full clutch of 8 eggs safely under incubation. Phew!