Conserving wildlife at landscape-scales. The project aims to conserve threatened wildlife at large scales in unfenced landscapes. Using empirical field experiments in Australia and New Zealand, the project will test how suppressing populations of invasive prey – rabbits – could reduce the effect of invasive predators – cats – on native wildlife. Feral cats threaten biodiversity globally, including Australia and New Zealand. Effective control of cats is difficult at large-scales but rabbit contro ....Conserving wildlife at landscape-scales. The project aims to conserve threatened wildlife at large scales in unfenced landscapes. Using empirical field experiments in Australia and New Zealand, the project will test how suppressing populations of invasive prey – rabbits – could reduce the effect of invasive predators – cats – on native wildlife. Feral cats threaten biodiversity globally, including Australia and New Zealand. Effective control of cats is difficult at large-scales but rabbit control is feasible. The project aims to provide a conceptual approach for biodiversity conservation that can be scaled up to mitigate the effects of invasive predators at large scales globally and allow restoration of ecosystems.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE170101116
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$370,159.00
Summary
Adaptations in Tasmanian devil facial tumour disease. This project aims to understand how defence mechanisms against infectious diseases arise and evolve in nature. Infectious diseases exert strong evolutionary pressures on populations, forcing the development of adaptive strategies to fight the costs of infection. The project aims to determine individual differences in response to infection and how these affect population-scale transmission and evolutionary dynamics under natural and managed sc ....Adaptations in Tasmanian devil facial tumour disease. This project aims to understand how defence mechanisms against infectious diseases arise and evolve in nature. Infectious diseases exert strong evolutionary pressures on populations, forcing the development of adaptive strategies to fight the costs of infection. The project aims to determine individual differences in response to infection and how these affect population-scale transmission and evolutionary dynamics under natural and managed scenarios. This is expected to reveal populations’ adaptive capability and resilience against diseases and the effects of management interventions in controlling disease outbreaks and preventing population declines or extinctions.Read moreRead less
An integrated tool for informing pest management: modelling range shifts for an invasive vertebrate in response to climate change. Invasive species and climate contribute directly to loss of biodiversity and economic productivity. This research project focuses on providing user-orientated tools that enable a strategic approach to European rabbit management and vertebrate pest control in Australia in response to anticipated climate and land-use change.
Investigating the genetic basis for heterogeneous susceptibility of Tasmanian devils to a novel infectious cancer. This project will use genetics and modelling to reveal why Tasmanian devils in northwest Tasmania are not dying from facial tumour disease, a new, unusual infectious cancer threatening this iconic carnivore with extinction. This project will predict extinction risk, develop management options, and provide a new template for managing emerging wildlife diseases.
Natural selection and the Tasmanian devil. This project aims to explain evolution of immune capabilities in response to disease threats in the wild by assessing the immune adaptive capabilities of Tasmanian devils in response to facial tumour disease. It plans to determine how the expression of immune genes differs between wild and captive populations. The project will combine immunology, epidemiology and evolutionary biology, to understand the role of host genetic and phenotypic adaptations to ....Natural selection and the Tasmanian devil. This project aims to explain evolution of immune capabilities in response to disease threats in the wild by assessing the immune adaptive capabilities of Tasmanian devils in response to facial tumour disease. It plans to determine how the expression of immune genes differs between wild and captive populations. The project will combine immunology, epidemiology and evolutionary biology, to understand the role of host genetic and phenotypic adaptations to disease threats. The project will assist in the development of diagnostic tools for managing this and other threatened species and for screening disease resistance markers across wild and captive insurance populations.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE200100074
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$580,000.00
Summary
Data Co-operative Platform for Social Impact and Wellbeing. The Data Cooperative (Co-Op) Platform for Social Impact and Wellbeing aims to make data-driven research and decision-making in the social sciences more effective and efficient by developing infrastructure to support data integration and harmonisation of diverse data resources. Social research relies on a vast array of data types and sources, both open and confidential, making data analysis complex and time-consuming. This project will d ....Data Co-operative Platform for Social Impact and Wellbeing. The Data Cooperative (Co-Op) Platform for Social Impact and Wellbeing aims to make data-driven research and decision-making in the social sciences more effective and efficient by developing infrastructure to support data integration and harmonisation of diverse data resources. Social research relies on a vast array of data types and sources, both open and confidential, making data analysis complex and time-consuming. This project will drive innovation across a range of critical social issues that require integrated data for research and social innovation including healthcare, better outcomes for disadvantaged and vulnerable groups, resilient urban, rural and regional communities, and increasing our capacity to respond to climate change. Read moreRead less
Antarctic cities and the global commons: Rethinking the gateways. Antarctic cities and the global commons: Rethinking the gateways. This project aims to investigate how the Antarctic gateway cities of Hobart, Christchurch and Punta Arenas might reimagine and intensify their relations to the continent and each other. As pressures on Antarctica increase, five 'gateway cities'—Hobart, Cape Town, Christchurch, Punta Arenas and Ushuaia—will become critical to its future. This research is expected to ....Antarctic cities and the global commons: Rethinking the gateways. Antarctic cities and the global commons: Rethinking the gateways. This project aims to investigate how the Antarctic gateway cities of Hobart, Christchurch and Punta Arenas might reimagine and intensify their relations to the continent and each other. As pressures on Antarctica increase, five 'gateway cities'—Hobart, Cape Town, Christchurch, Punta Arenas and Ushuaia—will become critical to its future. This research is expected to create a robust custodial network of partner organisations that helps these cities care for Antarctica.Read moreRead less
The Role Of Central Haemodynamics In Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus-related Brain Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$899,704.00
Summary
Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus is associated with stiffening of major blood vessels which may allow the transmission of harmful pressure to the small vessels of the brain. This may in turn be responsible for damage to brain cells and a greater risk of dementia. This study will use state-of-the art techniques to test this theory. If true, it may open opportunities to reduce the risk of brain disease in diabetes by using therapies to reduce arterial stiffening.
Generalised methods for testing extinction dynamics across geological, near and modern time scales. The record of extinctions over deep time is patchy and incomplete, yet we must use it to determine how major changes in past environments have shaped life on Earth today. The project will develop cutting-edge mathematical tools to determine the patterns of extinctions and speciation over geological time to help predict our uncertain environmental future.
Can Tasmanian Devils survive by adapting to devil facial tumour disease? This research will examine whether or not Tasmanian Devils are capable of adapting fast enough to survive the disease epidemic caused by a new contagious cancer, devil facial tumour disease, and evade extinction. Outcomes will determine long-term management responses to the disease and will set a benchmark for managing wildlife diseases worldwide.