Alexey Sergeevich Malchevsky

Alexey was born to Sergei P. Malchevsky, a professor of chemistry at Petrograd and Varvara Nikolaevna who was a graduate of the Smolny Institute. Alexey studied biology at Leningrad University working towards a Ph.D. on the vertebrate fauna of the Transvolga region. He defended his thesis in June 26, 1941, the fourth day after the war broke out. His studies were interrupted by the war and he was drafted to the Leningrad Front and later in Belarus where he served as commander of an infantry platoon. He was wounded by machine gun fire at Konigsberg on February 20, 1945 and left for dead. Badly injured and bleeding, he crawled and narrowly escaped death. A thick book in which he kept his bird observations had several bullets embedded in it. After the war he returned as a biology faculty at Leningrad State University. He wrote his habilitation thesis under Professor Valentin Dogiel and obtained a Dr. Biol. Sc. in 1958 and became a professor and guide to more than 30 students including Roald L. Potapov and Vitaly Bianki Jr. During the Stalinist era, Malchevsky's assistance was sought to prove Trofim Lysenko's theory that the cuckoo was not a distinct species of birds and that it was the result of changing the diet of a warbler.

A major contribution to ornithology was his work on philopatry and post-natal dispersal of birds.

Malchevsky helped produce documentary films on bird nesting and on the capercaillie. His studies included those on cuckoo brood parasitism. His extensive recordings of bird sounds and notes are stored at the St. Petersburg State University. He was decorated for his services by an Order of the Red Star.

Malchevsky was married to Tatyana Nikolaevna (née Tretyakova), and they had two daughters.