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Author: Les Underhill

Prof Les Underhill was Director of the Animal Demography Unit (ADU) at the University of Cape Town from its start in 1991 until he retired. Although citizen science in biology is Les’s passion, his academic background is in mathematical statistics. He was awarded his PhD in abstract multivariate analyses in 1973 at UCT and what he likes to say about his PhD is that he solved a problem that no one has ever had. He soon grasped that this was not the field to which he wanted to devote his life, so he retrained himself as an applied statistician, solving real-world problems.
Biodiversity/Birding/BirdPix/Birds/Citizen Science/Industrial biodiversity/News/Site report/Virtual Museum

Industrial Biodiversity 2 : Black River in Paarden Eiland : novel ecosystem

Posted on 22/10/2019 by Les Underhill

This remarkable 200-m section of the Black River in Paarden Eiland is a novel ecosystem. There are many bird species breeding and feeding. It is a biodiversity ...

Biodiversity/Citizen Science/OdonataMAP/Virtual Museum

First draft of new generation maps for dragonflies and damselflies

Posted on 19/09/2019 by Les Underhill

The map below shows coverage for OdonataMAP. There are records for only 1,101 of the 2,014 grid cells of South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland. That’s a lit...

Biodiversity/BirdPix/Citizen Science/Karoo/LepiMAP/MammalMAP/News/OdonataMAP/Site report/Trip report/Virtual Museum

The BDI visits Roam Private Game Reserve

Posted on 03/09/2019 by Les Underhill

Five years ago, the Post family bought a 5000 ha property in the Karoo which had been used for hunting, turned it into a biodiversity conservation area, and ren...

Citizen Science/Virtual Museum

Atlas maps: choice of grid scale

Posted on 06/07/2019 by Les Underhill

Traditionally, we have used the quarter-degree grid scale to generate distribution maps in biodiversity atlases. In southern Africa, this convention started wit...

Biodiversity/Citizen Science/LepiMAP/Virtual Museum

Virtual Museum: open for refreshments!

Posted on 02/07/2019 by Les Underhill

As you drive your new car out of the showroom, its value drops dramatically, and then keeps on dropping. It’s not quite as bad with the Virtual Museum. Bu...

Citizen Science/Virtual Museum

Quarter-degree grid cells made simple

Posted on 27/06/2019 by Les Underhill

Lump it or leave it, quarter-degree grid cells are entrenched in the mapping system of South Africa. In an article called “SA Mapsheet Referencing“,...

Archive/BirdPix/Data and statistics

Exploring data: the median and the mean, and everything in between

Posted on 26/06/2019 by Les Underhill

Here is the assignment for this blog. “Write a report on the progress being made in the Western Cape by the BirdPix section of the Virtual Museum.” ...

Data and statistics

Exploring data: The difference between data and an anecdote

Posted on 25/06/2019 by Les Underhill

  If you only have one data point, then you have an “anecdote”. Like the photo below:   The information we have is that of a single Chacma...

Biodiversity/Bird ringing/Citizen Science/Trip report/Virtual Museum

Virtual Museuming at Mwamba Conservation Centre, A Rocha Kenya

Posted on 04/06/2019 by Les Underhill

Mwamba is the Conservation Centre of A Rocha Kenya. It is on the coast, and offshore is the Watamu Marine National Park. Just inland is the Arabuko-Sokoke Fores...

Biodiversity/Citizen Science/Trip report

… participating in a Tropical Biology Association course in Nairobi

Posted on 03/06/2019 by Les Underhill

It was a great privilege to be part of the team teaching at a course for the Tropical Biology Association in Nairobi during April. The course was called “...

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  • Home
  • Departments
    • Research Training
      • Introduction
      • Research Themes
      • Study Sites
      • Logistics
    • Bird Ringing
      • Introduction
      • Ringing history
      • The Value of Bird Ringing
    • Science and Ecology Specialist Consulting
    • Citizen Science – Biodiversity Conservation & Research
    • Biodiversity Observations
  • About
    • What we do
    • Who we are
    • Contact us
  • News
    • Archive
    • BDI Research
    • BDI Bridge
    • BDInsight
  • Upcoming BDI events
  • Biodiversity Projects
    • Bird Feeder Project
    • Atlas of Frogs & Toads
    • Atlas of African Neuroptera and Megaloptera
    • Atlas of Dragonflies & Damselflies
    • Atlas of Butterflies & Moths
  • Karoo Research Centre

Recent posts

  • Grey-winged Francolin (Scleroptila afra)
    Cover image of Grey-winged […]
  • Bird ringing at Frogmore Estate/Zandvlei : 9 …
    Frogmore Estate is a suburb of Cape Town, a few […]
  • Orange River Francolin (Scleroptila gutturali…
    Cover image of Orange River Francolin by Lia […]
  • Black Harrier (Circus maurus)
    Cover image of Black […]
  • Bird ringing at Nuwejaars Wetlands SMA : 12 t…
    This was our 12th bird ringing expedition to the […]
The Biodiversity & Development Institute is a non-profit company registered with the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission of South Africa (CIPC), Reg. No. 2015/136344/08.
Registration in terms of the Non-Profit Organisations Act: 302-671 NPO.


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les@thebdi.org
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