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
Unlocking telomere effects on life, death and fitness in a warming world. Few things in biology provoke such a strong desire for understanding as when adult death and fatal disease can be predicted early in life. A common factor linking early life stress, disease, ageing and time of death are telomeres, the protective regions at the end of each chromosome. This project aims to explicitly link telomere dynamics in free-living ectotherm populations with experimental approaches to advance our under ....Unlocking telomere effects on life, death and fitness in a warming world. Few things in biology provoke such a strong desire for understanding as when adult death and fatal disease can be predicted early in life. A common factor linking early life stress, disease, ageing and time of death are telomeres, the protective regions at the end of each chromosome. This project aims to explicitly link telomere dynamics in free-living ectotherm populations with experimental approaches to advance our understanding of parental and environmental effects on offspring telomeres and their effects later in life. This project will take advantage of one of the world’s longest datasets on ectotherm responses to climate to provide new knowledge of how telomeres affect fitness and the role that the environment plays.Read moreRead less
Phenotypic plasticity and plant water use in a changing climate: a multi-species, multi-site investigation. Plants are highly responsive to the conditions under which they grow, but the combination of conditions they experience will be altered under climate change. This research into plant responses to the novel environments posed by climate change will examine plasticity in water-use-traits to better predict native plant tolerance of climate change.
How beetles harness near-infrared properties to enhance energy efficiency. This project aims to discover how animals use nanophotonic structures to manipulate near infra-red light for thermal control and visual information. Almost nothing is currently known about the mechanism, function and evolution of near-infrared properties in animals, despite their potential importance for maintaining body temperatures within the critical thermal limits for survival. The project uses multidisciplinary techn ....How beetles harness near-infrared properties to enhance energy efficiency. This project aims to discover how animals use nanophotonic structures to manipulate near infra-red light for thermal control and visual information. Almost nothing is currently known about the mechanism, function and evolution of near-infrared properties in animals, despite their potential importance for maintaining body temperatures within the critical thermal limits for survival. The project uses multidisciplinary techniques from optical physics, physiology and evolutionary biology to reveal near-infrared adaptations in socially and economically important Christmas beetles. The intended outcomes include a bio-informed blueprint for a new class of functional nanomaterials that enhance energy efficiency.Read moreRead less
Discovering nature's photonic devices to control light and heat. This project aims to discover how and why beetles and butterflies reflect near-infrared light. Reflection of near-infrared radiation may be critical to prevent overheating, yet its role in thermal protection remains largely unexplored. The project will integrate evolutionary biology, optical physics and biophysics to reveal the diversity, mechanism, function and evolution of near-infrared signatures. Expected outcomes include the d ....Discovering nature's photonic devices to control light and heat. This project aims to discover how and why beetles and butterflies reflect near-infrared light. Reflection of near-infrared radiation may be critical to prevent overheating, yet its role in thermal protection remains largely unexplored. The project will integrate evolutionary biology, optical physics and biophysics to reveal the diversity, mechanism, function and evolution of near-infrared signatures. Expected outcomes include the discovery of nature’s solutions to selection for both optical (camouflage, communication) and thermal functions. The project will have significant benefits such as creating opportunities to develop biomimetic and bioinspired materials to enhance energy efficiency, which will have significant economic and environmental benefits.Read moreRead less
Biodiversity and population genetics of groundwater calcrete ecosystems of central Western Australia. This project will lead to documentation of a unique subterranean ecosystem of world acclaim, representing a significant component of the biodiversity of the Australian arid zone. It will further contribute to sustainable management of groundwater ecosystems and provide information that can be used to predict and monitor how future water use and climate change may impact on these ecosystems. Resu ....Biodiversity and population genetics of groundwater calcrete ecosystems of central Western Australia. This project will lead to documentation of a unique subterranean ecosystem of world acclaim, representing a significant component of the biodiversity of the Australian arid zone. It will further contribute to sustainable management of groundwater ecosystems and provide information that can be used to predict and monitor how future water use and climate change may impact on these ecosystems. Results generated will provide the knowledge base required to improve the efficiency and scientific rigour of the environmental review process for major resource projects, leading to economic benefits to the mining and environmental consultancy industries, and to Australia in general.Read moreRead less
Assessment of the diversity, distribution and uniqueness of subterranean animals from calcrete aquifers in central western Australia. Recently a rich and diverse subterranean invertebrate fauna (stygofauna) was unexpectedly discovered from numerous isolated calcrete aquifers associated with palaeodrainage channels in central Western Australia. Our recent taxonomic and molecular studies have suggested that stygofaunas within each aquifer may be highly endemic. We aim to test this hypothesis by in ....Assessment of the diversity, distribution and uniqueness of subterranean animals from calcrete aquifers in central western Australia. Recently a rich and diverse subterranean invertebrate fauna (stygofauna) was unexpectedly discovered from numerous isolated calcrete aquifers associated with palaeodrainage channels in central Western Australia. Our recent taxonomic and molecular studies have suggested that stygofaunas within each aquifer may be highly endemic. We aim to test this hypothesis by investigating the diversity, distribution and uniqueness of stygofauna from three major calcrete regions. We further aim to document the environmental conditions and variability within the aquifers and to develop rigorous sampling protocols. Such data are essential for the development of appropriate strategies for sustainable management of subterranean water and their ecosystems.Read moreRead less
Environmental stress profiling (ESP): Molecular profiling of sediment microbial communities for improved biological monitoring in aquatic ecosystems. Water resource management is a key issue for environmental sustainability in Australia and strategies that include ecological principles are important to improve present conditions and reduce further degradation. Current biomonitoring methods suffer from a low degree of sensitivity that can seriously impact their effectiveness as early warning sign ....Environmental stress profiling (ESP): Molecular profiling of sediment microbial communities for improved biological monitoring in aquatic ecosystems. Water resource management is a key issue for environmental sustainability in Australia and strategies that include ecological principles are important to improve present conditions and reduce further degradation. Current biomonitoring methods suffer from a low degree of sensitivity that can seriously impact their effectiveness as early warning signals of ecological disturbance. We propose to combine molecular and ecotoxicological assessment of the effect of zinc toxicity on microbial communities to provide rapid pollution sensitive bioassessment. Our research will lead to a better understanding of the cause and effect of heavy metal pollution within aquatic ecosystems and greater insight on how to reduce and repair the negative effects.Read moreRead less
The ecology of parasite transmission in fauna translocations. Parasitic diseases pose a threat to the conservation management of Australia's biodiversity. This project will improve our understanding of the impact and transmission of parasites in fauna translocations, contributing to the conservation management of Australian ecosystems by government and private agencies.