Can animal dispersal inform fire management for species conservation? This project aims to improve fire management for environmental outcomes in northern Australia. It will address a key knowledge gap in our understanding of the effects of fire on biodiversity, relating to the spatial pattern of fire in the landscape. This is important because changing patterns of fire are not only a risk to humans but have major effects on our environment. This project will involve researchers, environmental ma ....Can animal dispersal inform fire management for species conservation? This project aims to improve fire management for environmental outcomes in northern Australia. It will address a key knowledge gap in our understanding of the effects of fire on biodiversity, relating to the spatial pattern of fire in the landscape. This is important because changing patterns of fire are not only a risk to humans but have major effects on our environment. This project will involve researchers, environmental managers and indigenous land owners to design better fire management strategies for biodiversity. The key benefits include new knowledge and tools to better manage fire and address one of our major environmental challenges, the decline of native wildlife in northern Australia.Read moreRead less
Skin Microbes and Animal Health: Understanding the Ecological Context. This project aims to understand the fundamental ecological relationships between animal hosts (frogs, geckos) and bacteria on their skin by separating host effects from environmental factors that determine skin microbiome composition. The research is significant because it will generate new knowledge needed to understand how skin microbes function in providing protection against disease. Expected outcomes include the provisio ....Skin Microbes and Animal Health: Understanding the Ecological Context. This project aims to understand the fundamental ecological relationships between animal hosts (frogs, geckos) and bacteria on their skin by separating host effects from environmental factors that determine skin microbiome composition. The research is significant because it will generate new knowledge needed to understand how skin microbes function in providing protection against disease. Expected outcomes include the provision of essential information that will guide future research efforts on the factors that determine a healthy skin microbial community (which is needed before skin diseases can be combated). The research will provide significant benefits, including more targeted conservation efforts to combat wildlife skin diseases.Read moreRead less
Plant-herbivore interactions: a model two-species system from northern Australia. The proposed research addresses a critical aspect of magpie goose ecology. Understanding the interaction between the birds and the bulbs is critical to respond effectively to past and threatened losses of important sedge habitats to sea level rise. This knowledge will inform management of the Kakadu World Heritage Site and an iconic waterfowl of great cultural and economic significance. In addition to their importa ....Plant-herbivore interactions: a model two-species system from northern Australia. The proposed research addresses a critical aspect of magpie goose ecology. Understanding the interaction between the birds and the bulbs is critical to respond effectively to past and threatened losses of important sedge habitats to sea level rise. This knowledge will inform management of the Kakadu World Heritage Site and an iconic waterfowl of great cultural and economic significance. In addition to their importance as a Gondwanan relic and sole member of the Family Anseranatidae, the species is an important food-source for Aboriginal people, and tourists travel to the Kakadu wetlands to witness huge dry season congregations.Read moreRead less
Surviving in a toad-colonised landscape: manipulating predator behaviour to reduce the impact of the cane toad invasion. Invasive species pose a major threat to biodiversity; and within Australia, cane toads are widely viewed as one of the biggest such problems. Vigorous attempts at toad control have failed to slow the invasion front, and toads are now entering the Kimberley region. If we can’t stop the toads, are there other ways to reduce the numbers of native predators killed by eating thes ....Surviving in a toad-colonised landscape: manipulating predator behaviour to reduce the impact of the cane toad invasion. Invasive species pose a major threat to biodiversity; and within Australia, cane toads are widely viewed as one of the biggest such problems. Vigorous attempts at toad control have failed to slow the invasion front, and toads are now entering the Kimberley region. If we can’t stop the toads, are there other ways to reduce the numbers of native predators killed by eating these poisonous invaders? Predators given nausea-inducing chemicals with their first toad meal rapidly learn to avoid cane toads as prey, enabling them to survive even where toads are present. The study will develop those methods for several vulnerable native species, including techniques for deployment of aversion-inducing baits in advance of the toad invasion.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE130100434
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$371,114.00
Summary
What fire regimes can maintain biodiversity in northern Australia's savannah landscapes, and how do we implement them? Inappropriate fire regimes (the frequency, intensity and size of bushfires) are causing ongoing declines in Australia's biodiversity, yet we have little understanding of the fire regimes that should be implemented. Focussing on Kakadu National Park in northern Australia, this project will develop optimal fire management strategies for conserving biodiversity.
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR0354789
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$10,000.00
Summary
Networking environmental science to achieve integrated management of Australian terrestrial biodiversity in an era of environmental change. Human activities impact Australian ecosystems profoundly and compound natural complexity by superimposing environmental changes. Thus, understanding, conserving and enhancing Australian biodiversity demands interdisciplinary research and management strategies. These activities lack overarching strategic coordination, being conducted mainly by groups with fo ....Networking environmental science to achieve integrated management of Australian terrestrial biodiversity in an era of environmental change. Human activities impact Australian ecosystems profoundly and compound natural complexity by superimposing environmental changes. Thus, understanding, conserving and enhancing Australian biodiversity demands interdisciplinary research and management strategies. These activities lack overarching strategic coordination, being conducted mainly by groups with focused interests. We will develop a Network uniting the skills, resources and energies of excellent and productive researchers and managers of natural resources across the relevant disciplines and organizations, and so work synergistically towards the National Research Priority of an Environmentally Sustainable Australia.Read moreRead less
Competition between regulatory processes in Amphibians: Testing the effects of physical and physiological factors on thermoregulation and hydroregulation. Regulation of body temperature is important for many animals, and it influences processes such as growth and reproduction. However, it is not clear to what extent wet-skinned animals can control body temperature because of evaporation. Understanding this about frogs is crucial to understanding their habitat requirements and the effects of clim ....Competition between regulatory processes in Amphibians: Testing the effects of physical and physiological factors on thermoregulation and hydroregulation. Regulation of body temperature is important for many animals, and it influences processes such as growth and reproduction. However, it is not clear to what extent wet-skinned animals can control body temperature because of evaporation. Understanding this about frogs is crucial to understanding their habitat requirements and the effects of climate change, habitat modification, and the invasion of cane toads on their populations. Amphibians are in decline worldwide, and research into the basic ways that these animals interact with the physical environment is needed before effective management plans can be produced. The unique physiological characteristics of Australian frogs make this is the best place in the world to do this research.Read moreRead less
Cane toads in southern Australia: invasion dynamics and options for control. This project aims to investigate the spread of cane toads through southern Australia, an invasion front that has attracted far less research than the same species’ expansion through tropical regions, even though toads severely impact native wildlife in both areas. This project expects to generate new knowledge to determine why the rate of toad invasion is so much slower in New South Wales than in the tropics, and how be ....Cane toads in southern Australia: invasion dynamics and options for control. This project aims to investigate the spread of cane toads through southern Australia, an invasion front that has attracted far less research than the same species’ expansion through tropical regions, even though toads severely impact native wildlife in both areas. This project expects to generate new knowledge to determine why the rate of toad invasion is so much slower in New South Wales than in the tropics, and how best to modify newly-developed approaches to toad control to the conditions in southern Australia. Expected outcomes include predicting future trajectories of expansion, and identifying optimal approaches to toad control and impact mitigation. This should provide significant benefits for biodiversity conservation.Read moreRead less
Effects of maternal foraging success and oceanographic variation on offspring behaviour and survival in the southern elephant seal. Juvenile survival is the key determinant of mammalian population performance, but the proximate determinants of this have rarely been established in large, long-lived predators. Southern elephant seals, with their concentrated lactation effort and marked separation of energy acquisition (at-sea foraging) and expenditure (on-land lactation) provide an ideal model for ....Effects of maternal foraging success and oceanographic variation on offspring behaviour and survival in the southern elephant seal. Juvenile survival is the key determinant of mammalian population performance, but the proximate determinants of this have rarely been established in large, long-lived predators. Southern elephant seals, with their concentrated lactation effort and marked separation of energy acquisition (at-sea foraging) and expenditure (on-land lactation) provide an ideal model for investigating these factors. In this study, we investigate the partitioning of pre-partum performance (fat acquired in mothers) relative to spatial-temporal variation in ocean productivity and the effect of this expenditure on offspring condition and survival. Here, the final missing link of energy transfer and its effects on offspring will be a major outcome of this project.Read moreRead less
Do frogs hydroregulate? Regulation versus tolerance of thermal and hydric states. Amphibians are in decline in Australia and worldwide. Frogs are a middle link in terrestrial and aquatic food chains (as predators and prey) so are important for the sustainability of Australia's biodiversity and as indicators of environmental problems. Basic research about the ways Australian frogs interact with the physical environment to balance body water and temperature is crucial to predicting the effects of ....Do frogs hydroregulate? Regulation versus tolerance of thermal and hydric states. Amphibians are in decline in Australia and worldwide. Frogs are a middle link in terrestrial and aquatic food chains (as predators and prey) so are important for the sustainability of Australia's biodiversity and as indicators of environmental problems. Basic research about the ways Australian frogs interact with the physical environment to balance body water and temperature is crucial to predicting the effects of climate change or habitat modification on frogs. This basic information is needed to produce effective conservation plans for native frogs and management plans for invasive cane toads. We will train students in techniques and concepts in ecology, conservation biology, and animal physiology.Read moreRead less