Drivers of phenotypic evolution in a vulnerable alpine ecosystem. This project aims to deliver a comprehensive, integrated understanding of the capacity for resilience and drivers of response of highly vulnerable alpine species and communities to climate change. The project aims to determine how communities of interacting alpine plants, soil invertebrates and microbes can cope with or evolve to novel climatic conditions. The mountains are water towers critical to power supply and Australia's agr ....Drivers of phenotypic evolution in a vulnerable alpine ecosystem. This project aims to deliver a comprehensive, integrated understanding of the capacity for resilience and drivers of response of highly vulnerable alpine species and communities to climate change. The project aims to determine how communities of interacting alpine plants, soil invertebrates and microbes can cope with or evolve to novel climatic conditions. The mountains are water towers critical to power supply and Australia's agricultural productivity. Understanding physiological tolerance and the potential for rapid evolutionary responses of plants, animals and communities is necessary to predict impacts of climate change on the future productivity of the vulnerable Australian Alps and to provide novel options for climate adaptation. Read moreRead less
Species and gene turnover across environmental gradients - a landscape-level approach to quantify biodiversity and resilience for climate adaptation. Biodiversity corridor planning in Australia desperately needs to progress beyond the simple linking up of remnant vegetation, based on aerial maps and start incorporating ecosystem features which will promote climate adaptation. This project will develop a new genomics method to assess ecosystem resilience for use in national biodiversity corridor ....Species and gene turnover across environmental gradients - a landscape-level approach to quantify biodiversity and resilience for climate adaptation. Biodiversity corridor planning in Australia desperately needs to progress beyond the simple linking up of remnant vegetation, based on aerial maps and start incorporating ecosystem features which will promote climate adaptation. This project will develop a new genomics method to assess ecosystem resilience for use in national biodiversity corridor planning.Read moreRead less
Evolution at extremes: Macroevolutionary responses to harsh environments. The project seeks to investigate the capacity of iconic Australian plant groups (Eucalyptus, Acacia, Banksia, Grevillea, Hakea) to adapt to increases in extreme conditions. Australia presents many extreme conditions for plant survival, such as drought, heat, or salt-affected soils. Are some lineages better able to adapt and diversify in these conditions? This project aims to develop new methods to identify lineages most to ....Evolution at extremes: Macroevolutionary responses to harsh environments. The project seeks to investigate the capacity of iconic Australian plant groups (Eucalyptus, Acacia, Banksia, Grevillea, Hakea) to adapt to increases in extreme conditions. Australia presents many extreme conditions for plant survival, such as drought, heat, or salt-affected soils. Are some lineages better able to adapt and diversify in these conditions? This project aims to develop new methods to identify lineages most tolerant of extreme environments, detect enabling traits that contribute to stress resistance, and test whether plant assemblages in extreme environments are formed from colonisation by specialist tolerators, or by local species adapting. These methods may allow the prediction of species or communities best able to adapt to conditions expected under global environmental change.Read moreRead less