Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE220100466
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$462,647.00
Summary
Mito-nuclear coevolution as an engine of biodiversity. This project aims to advance understanding of the processes that drive speciation and generate biodiversity. It will use Australia’s native social bees to test whether genetic diversity in mitochondrial genomes drives biodiversity at the population level, combining molecular and field studies in this uniquely tractable natural system. The expected outcome is a significant advance in knowledge of how coevolution between the two genomes of euk ....Mito-nuclear coevolution as an engine of biodiversity. This project aims to advance understanding of the processes that drive speciation and generate biodiversity. It will use Australia’s native social bees to test whether genetic diversity in mitochondrial genomes drives biodiversity at the population level, combining molecular and field studies in this uniquely tractable natural system. The expected outcome is a significant advance in knowledge of how coevolution between the two genomes of eukaryotic cells - mitochondrial and nuclear - affect the observable diversity of the natural world. The project is also expected to benefit the management and conservation of Australian native bees, which are vital pollinators in our natural and agro-ecosystems. Read moreRead less
Altering host-parasite interactions through wildlife conservation strategies. Disease outbreaks are heightened in endangered animals but strategies used to conserve these species often increase risk of disease; nowhere is this more critical than in species recovery programs. The project will study disease in a recovery program to improve conservation practice and protect Australia's wildlife, ensuring our ecosystems are sustained.
Mobility, stasis or extinction? The response of plants to long-term environmental change. This study of Australian plants will improve our ability to predict how plants and vegetation will respond to climate change by investigating the ability of plants to survive climate change. In particular, this project is designed to generate simple principles that can be used in management of species and vegetation at risk from climate change.
The sparrows in the mining towns: a century of adaptation to contamination. Our research will characterise how contamination from the extraction of precious metals can spread through the environment and how it effects a highly urbanised bird – the house sparrow. In many cases, populations of these birds have been intimately associated with mining operations for over a century, and our recent work has provided evidence of adaptation over time. House sparrows provide a great natural system to unde ....The sparrows in the mining towns: a century of adaptation to contamination. Our research will characterise how contamination from the extraction of precious metals can spread through the environment and how it effects a highly urbanised bird – the house sparrow. In many cases, populations of these birds have been intimately associated with mining operations for over a century, and our recent work has provided evidence of adaptation over time. House sparrows provide a great natural system to understand the genetic potential of organisms to adapt to anthropomorphic change in the environment connected with the resources industry. Our work, will bring new insight into the future management of environmental contamination, and the mitigation of adverse effects arising from resource extraction.Read moreRead less
Watching evolution in action using transitional forms of lizard pregnancy. By using newly developed epigenomic techniques and two Australian lizards that exhibit egg-laying, pregnancy and a rare transitional form of reproduction, this Project aims to watch “evolution in action” to determine how genetic changes enable the evolution of complex traits. The expected outcomes are a new synthesis of how genomic architecture underpins the transition from egg-laying to live-birth, and the first computat ....Watching evolution in action using transitional forms of lizard pregnancy. By using newly developed epigenomic techniques and two Australian lizards that exhibit egg-laying, pregnancy and a rare transitional form of reproduction, this Project aims to watch “evolution in action” to determine how genetic changes enable the evolution of complex traits. The expected outcomes are a new synthesis of how genomic architecture underpins the transition from egg-laying to live-birth, and the first computational model illustrating how transitional reproductive forms are maintained. The benefits include development of Australian expertise in state-of-the-art technologies, new international collaborations between the University of Sydney and Harvard, and significantly enhanced knowledge of vertebrate evolution and diversity.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE180101520
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$365,058.00
Summary
Diet, variance and individual variability in life-history. This project aims to provide biologists with novel statistical tools that will shift analytical paradigms. In many species, dietary restrictions increase average lifespan, and affect average rates of growth and reproduction, also known as ‘life history’. The use of recently developed tools has shown that individual variability in life history also appears to increase under dietary restrictions. This project will explore the effects of di ....Diet, variance and individual variability in life-history. This project aims to provide biologists with novel statistical tools that will shift analytical paradigms. In many species, dietary restrictions increase average lifespan, and affect average rates of growth and reproduction, also known as ‘life history’. The use of recently developed tools has shown that individual variability in life history also appears to increase under dietary restrictions. This project will explore the effects of diet composition on variability in life-history traits, and the factors driving this variation. This is expected to improve the prediction of the effects of changing nutritional environments.Read moreRead less
Evolution in action or the demise of iconic Australian flora? The project aims to investigate the evolutionary history and conservation status of a group of closely related Grevillea species, in the light of increasing pressure from landscape modification. This project will incorporate leading methodologies for massively parallel sequencing, pollinator preference and breeding capacity in order to detect the patterns and processes underpinning divergence in widely distributed species. A phylogene ....Evolution in action or the demise of iconic Australian flora? The project aims to investigate the evolutionary history and conservation status of a group of closely related Grevillea species, in the light of increasing pressure from landscape modification. This project will incorporate leading methodologies for massively parallel sequencing, pollinator preference and breeding capacity in order to detect the patterns and processes underpinning divergence in widely distributed species. A phylogenetic framework will provide the evolutionary relationships among taxa. This project is expected to inform requirements for long-term species persistence and, for threatened species within the group, guide the decision making of biodiversity managers as to what actions are required and where best to invest limited funds.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
Host-parasite interactions during a biological invasion: toads, frogs and nematodes in tropical Australia. Cane toads were introduced to Australia 70 years ago, and are widely believed to cause major problems for native ecosystems. My work has identified another impact of cane toads: they have brought some of their native-range parasites with them from Central America, and at least one species (a lungworm) now attacks native Australian frogs. This project will explore the impact of the parasit ....Host-parasite interactions during a biological invasion: toads, frogs and nematodes in tropical Australia. Cane toads were introduced to Australia 70 years ago, and are widely believed to cause major problems for native ecosystems. My work has identified another impact of cane toads: they have brought some of their native-range parasites with them from Central America, and at least one species (a lungworm) now attacks native Australian frogs. This project will explore the impact of the parasite on native frogs as well as on the toads themselves, and determine why some (but not all) toad populations in Australia have escaped from these viability-reducing parasites. My work will clarify host-parasite coevolution, the ecological impact of invasive organisms, and the feasibility of using parasites to help control toads within Australia.Read moreRead less
Coevolution of sundew bugs and sundews. This project aims to conduct a study of insect-plant interactions to determine if insects and plants coevolve or if they diversify by other evolutionary processes. Insect-plant coevolution is a hotly contested field in evolutionary biology. In Australia, a remarkable interaction exists between carnivorous plants and a group of bugs that steal the plant’s prey. This system offers a great opportunity to test competing coevolutionary theories through a combin ....Coevolution of sundew bugs and sundews. This project aims to conduct a study of insect-plant interactions to determine if insects and plants coevolve or if they diversify by other evolutionary processes. Insect-plant coevolution is a hotly contested field in evolutionary biology. In Australia, a remarkable interaction exists between carnivorous plants and a group of bugs that steal the plant’s prey. This system offers a great opportunity to test competing coevolutionary theories through a combination of historical and ecological approaches. The project expects to showcase the evolution and uniqueness of Australia’s native biota.Read moreRead less