Dario Massimino

Senior Data Scientist

Dario works on a range of projects aimed at modelling species distribution, understanding the effects of recent climate change, predicting the effects of climate change on bird populations, assessing bird population trends and producing biodiversity indicators.

Interests & Responsibilities

Dario's research interests mainly focus on the analysis of large datasets to answer questions relevant to wildlife conservation. He is particularly interested in studying the effects of climate change and predicting its long-term consequences on bird populations. Dario is also interested in understanding the effects of climate change on bird phenology. He is responsible for developing and running software for the assessment of species population trends from Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) and Waterways Breeding Bird Survey (WBBS) data, and for the production of the Wild Bird Population Indicators.

Qualifications

Jan 2004 – PhD Natural and Environmental Sciences ‘Assessment of forest quality in the province of Bergamo using bioindicators’ (University of Milano)
Mar 2000 - MSc Environmental Sciences (University of Milano-Bicocca)

Recent BTO Publications

Heywood, J.J.N., Massimino, D., Balmer, D.E., Kelly, L., Marion, S., Noble, D.G., Pearce-Higgins, J.W., White, D.M., Woodcock, P., Wotton, S. and Gillings, S. 2024. The Breeding Bird Survey 2023.
Brighton, C.H., Massimino, D., Boersch-Supan, P., Barnes, A.E., Martay, B., Bowler, D.E., Hoskins, H.M.J. & Pearce-Higgins, J.W. 2024. The benefits of protected areas for bird population trends may depend on their condition. Biological Conservation 292 View at journal website (DOI: 10.1016/j.biocon.2024.110553)
Tirozzi, P., Massimino, D. & Bani, L. 2024. Avian responses to climate extremes: insights into abundance curves and species sensitivity using the UK Breeding Bird Survey. Oecologia 204 : 241-255 View at journal website (DOI: 10.1007/s00442-023-05504-9)
Finch, T., Bradbury, R.B., Bradfer-Lawrence, T., Buchanan, G.M., Copping, J.P., Massimino, D., Smith, P., Peach, W.J. & Field, R.H. 2023. Spatially targeted nature-based solutions can mitigate climate change and nature loss but require a systems approach. One Earth 6 : 1 350-1 374 View at journal website (DOI: 10.1016/j.oneear.2023.09.005)
Heywood, J.J.N., Massimino, D., Balmer, D.E., Kelly, L., Noble, D.G., Pearce-Higgins, J.W., Woodcock, P., Wotton, S., Gillings, S. & Harris, S.J. 2023. The Breeding Bird Survey 2022. British Trust for Ornithology, Thetford, Norfolk ISBN: 978-1-912642-53-3 36pp
Plummer, K.E., Dadam, D., Brereton, T., Dennis, E.B., Massimino, D., Risely, K., Siriwardena, G.M. & Toms, M.P. 2023. Trends in butterfly populations in UK gardens - new evidence from citizen science monitoring. Insect Conservation and Diversity Link to publication View at journal website (DOI: 10.1111/icad.12645)

Other Publications

Massimino, D., Orioli, V., Pizzardi, F., Massa, R. & Bani, L. 2010. Usefulness of coarse grain data on forest management to improve bird abundance models. Italian Journal of Zoology 77: 71-80.

Bani, L., Massimino, D., Orioli, V., Bottoni, L. & Massa, R. 2009. Assessment of population trends of common breeding birds in Lombardy, northern Italy, 1992-2007. Ethology Ecology and Evolution 21: 27-44.

Massimino, D., Orioli, V., Massa, R. & Bani, L. 2008. Population trend assessment at large spatial scale: integrating data collected with heterogeneous sampling schemes by means of habitat modelling. Ethology Ecology and Evolution 20: 141-153.

Massimino, D., Masin, S., Bani, L., Dranzoa, C. & Massa, R. 2008. Partial recovery of an African rainforest bird community 35 years after logging. Ethology Ecology and Evolution 20: 391-399.

Bani, L., Massimino, D., Bottoni, L. & Massa, R. 2006. A multi-scale method for selecting indicator species and priority conservation areas: a case study for broadleaved forests in Lombardy, Italy. Conservation Biology 20: 512-526.

Massa, R., Bani, L., Massimino, D. & Bottoni, L. 2002. Forest biodiversity evaluated by means of bird communities [in Italian]. Lombardy Region, Milano. 



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