Nikolay Yordanov

Personal information

Contacts

Nikolay Yordanov
Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research, BAS
Department of Ecosystem Research, Environmental Risk and Conservation Biology
2, Gagarin Street
1113 Sofia
Bulgaria
E-mail: nikolay.yordanov@iber.bas.bg
E-mail: ecopraxis.yordanov@gmail.com
https://orcid.org/0009-0005-0959-1959

Curriculum vitae

Education:
- 2024 – present: PhD Candidate in Ecology and Conservation of Ecosystems, Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research, BAS; dissertation topic: Impact of wind farms on habitat use by model bird species (Supervisors: Prof. Dr. Pavel Zehtindjiev, Prof. Dr. Valko Biserkov)
- 2024: MSc in Environmental Protection, Faculty of Biology, Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski"
- 2022: BSc in Public Administration, Academy of the Ministry of Interior

Specialized Training & Professional Courses:
- 2026: MoveApps Biologging Training School & Annual Meeting, COST Action EUFLYNET (CA22117), Vienna, Austria (High-resolution trajectory segmentation, biologging workflows, and Movebank platform)
- 2025: Ecology of Animal Migration (NBI010F, 5.0 ECTS credits, Third Cycle / PhD Level), Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Lund University, Sweden
- 2025: Analytical Training: Statistics and Modelling in R (ANOVA, Linear Models, GLS, GLM), COST Action EUFLYNET (CA22117), University of Milan, Italy
- 2024: Biological Monitoring and/or Monitoring of Biological Diversity (20 credits), Training Centre – Bulgarian Academy of Sciences
- 2022: Professional Training Certifications in Multimedia, Computer Graphics & UI/UX Design, Software University (SoftUni): UI Design, UX Design, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Premiere Pro, Adobe After Effects

Employment & Professional Experience:
- 2024 – present: PhD Researcher, Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research, BAS
- 2021 – present: GIS, Computer Vision & Wildlife Monitoring Specialist / Project Manager, EcoPraxis Ltd. (engineering embedded Edge AI pipelines, training custom deep learning models, and deploying real-time automated PTZ tracking systems for soaring birds in operational wind energy facilities)

Recent Projects:
- 2024 – 2027: Impact of wind farms on habitat use by model bird species (PhD research project, IBER-BAS)
- 2026 – 2030: Genetics of long-distance migration (ERC Grant ID: 101199137), Department of Biology, Lund University (cordis.europa.eu / portal.research.lu.se) – Unravelling the genetic architecture, regulatory mechanisms, and evolutionary dynamics of long-distance bird migration using whole-genome sequencing and cross-breeding experiments.
- 2024 – present: RISKY – Wildlife Mortality from Energy and Transport Infrastructure (03-55-RISKY), funded by OSCARS under the European Commission's Horizon Europe Programme (www.risky.pt)
- 2024 – present: COST Action CA22117 EUFLYNET (European Flyway Network) – Working Group 3
- 2020 – present: Automated computer vision tracking, camera surveillance, and bird strike prevention systems at operational wind parks (Kaliakra region, NE Bulgaria)

Research interests

- Computer Vision & Edge AI in Wildlife Conservation: Training custom deep learning object detection models (YOLO), edge deployment on embedded systems, and real-time automated PTZ camera tracking of soaring birds in operational wind farms
- Movement Ecology & Biologging: High-resolution GPS/GSM telemetry data analysis, 3D flight trajectory modeling, flight behavior, and stopover/foraging habitat segmentation
- Renewable Energy Interactions & Avian Safety: Cumulative effect quantification, collision risk assessment, and Monte-Carlo simulation modeling of avian interactions with wind turbines
- GIS Spatial Modeling & Remote Sensing: Spatial analysis in QGIS, satellite earth observation (Copernicus Sentinel-2), and multi-temporal vegetation indices (NDVI) for ecological niche and land-use assessment

Publications

Soares, F. C., et al. (Accepted / In Press) Global Wind Farm Collision Data: a dataset on bird and bat mortality caused by collisions with wind turbines. Project RISKY (Horizon Europe / OSCARS). Figshare dataset: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.32113513

Yordanov, N., Zehtindjiev, P., Whitfield, D.P. (2026) Long-Term Decline in Bird Collisions at Operational Wind Farms: Evidence from Systematic Monitoring to Support Sustainable Wind Energy Development (2010–2024). Sustainability, 18(2), 992. https://doi.org/10.3390/su18020992

Yordanov, N., Nabielek, H., Bedev, K., Zehtindjiev, P. (2025) Bird Survival in Wind Farms by Monte-Carlo Simulation Modelling Based on Wide-Ranging Flight Tracking Data of Multiple Birds During Different Seasons. Birds, 6(3), 50. https://doi.org/10.3390/birds6030050

Zehtindjiev, P., Biserkov, V., Biserkov, Y., Yordanov, N. (2024) Cumulative Effect Quantification of the Spatial Interaction Between Wind Turbines and Birds: A Case Study of Adult White Storks at Eastern Flyway. Modern Civil Engineering, 4(2), 37–48. https://doi.org/10.15341/mce(2470-4180)/01–02.04.2024/004

Affiliation

Department

Ecosystem Research, Environmental Risk Assessment and Conservation Biology

Division

Community Ecology and Conservation Biology

Хронология

Член от

4 дни 3 часа