Using fire to manage biodiversity in fragmented landscapes. Using fire to manage biodiversity in fragmented landscapes. This project intends to develop a conservation management tool for use in fire-prone fragmented landscapes to reverse biodiversity loss. It will address two critical knowledge gaps: the combined effects of fire and fragmentation on animal movement, and the implications of current and future fire regimes for native animal populations. Land-use change has severely fragmented 40% ....Using fire to manage biodiversity in fragmented landscapes. Using fire to manage biodiversity in fragmented landscapes. This project intends to develop a conservation management tool for use in fire-prone fragmented landscapes to reverse biodiversity loss. It will address two critical knowledge gaps: the combined effects of fire and fragmentation on animal movement, and the implications of current and future fire regimes for native animal populations. Land-use change has severely fragmented 40% of Australia’s natural landscapes, resulting in loss of habitat for native biodiversity. Remaining habitat fragments are at risk from increases in the frequency and intensity of fire, which also threatens biodiversity. The anticipated outcome is a conservation management tool that is readily transferable to any fire-prone system.Read moreRead less
A global standard for the status of Wetlands of International Importance. The project will develop and test a new global standard for the assessment and reporting on ecological condition of internationally important wetlands, listed under the Ramsar Convention. It has four aims: establishment of a strategic adaptive management and governance framework, a meta-analysis of the 2,303 internationally listed wetlands, development of a protocol for assessment and prediction and delivering a digital re ....A global standard for the status of Wetlands of International Importance. The project will develop and test a new global standard for the assessment and reporting on ecological condition of internationally important wetlands, listed under the Ramsar Convention. It has four aims: establishment of a strategic adaptive management and governance framework, a meta-analysis of the 2,303 internationally listed wetlands, development of a protocol for assessment and prediction and delivering a digital reporting platform for effective management. The project is significant because it tackles the decline of freshwater ecosystems, by targeting the most prominent wetlands. It also assists state and national governments to meet their obligations under the Ramsar Convention and most importantly guides more effective management.Read moreRead less
Beyond fire frequency: understanding fire season for ecosystem management. This project aims to investigate how the season of fire, arguably one of the biggest changes brought about by fire management, can impact ecosystems and the persistence of threatened species. The project expects to generate new yet fundamental knowledge of how the timing of fire has shifted, using a multidisciplinary team with expertise in remote sensing and fire ecology, and experimentally assess fire season effects on s ....Beyond fire frequency: understanding fire season for ecosystem management. This project aims to investigate how the season of fire, arguably one of the biggest changes brought about by fire management, can impact ecosystems and the persistence of threatened species. The project expects to generate new yet fundamental knowledge of how the timing of fire has shifted, using a multidisciplinary team with expertise in remote sensing and fire ecology, and experimentally assess fire season effects on soil properties and plant persistence. The project aims to enhance capacity of conservation agencies across Australia to effectively implement fires while maintaining biodiversity values. This should provide significant benefits for informed management of the large numbers of threatened species under their protection.Read moreRead less
Contemporary and retrospective genomic analyses of tiger and white sharks. This project aims to elucidate population structure and spatiotemporal changes in population distribution of tiger and white sharks; estimate the effective number of individuals across populations; and investigate signatures of adaptive evolution in tiger- and white shark populations in response to exploitation and global change. It will perform high-resolution retrospective genomic analyses using DNA extracted from conte ....Contemporary and retrospective genomic analyses of tiger and white sharks. This project aims to elucidate population structure and spatiotemporal changes in population distribution of tiger and white sharks; estimate the effective number of individuals across populations; and investigate signatures of adaptive evolution in tiger- and white shark populations in response to exploitation and global change. It will perform high-resolution retrospective genomic analyses using DNA extracted from contemporary and archival tiger and white shark skeletal material held in museum and trophy collections around the world. This project expects to gain valuable insight into the biology of both species and provide information for conservation and management purposes.Read moreRead less
Are kangaroos jeopardizing conservation outcomes? There is concern that grazing by over-abundant kangaroos is jeopardising the goals of arid conservation reserves, but there is little evidence about the extent of their impacts. The goal of this proposal is to quantify kangaroos' grazing effects on biodiversity within arid conservation reserves. The results will provide a whole ecosystem understanding of how overgrazing by kangaroos influences the biodiversity conservation value of the vast lands ....Are kangaroos jeopardizing conservation outcomes? There is concern that grazing by over-abundant kangaroos is jeopardising the goals of arid conservation reserves, but there is little evidence about the extent of their impacts. The goal of this proposal is to quantify kangaroos' grazing effects on biodiversity within arid conservation reserves. The results will provide a whole ecosystem understanding of how overgrazing by kangaroos influences the biodiversity conservation value of the vast landscapes of arid Australia. Managers of many conservation reserves, including our project partners, and policy-makers need the information that our experiments will provide to inform the development of strategies to optimise biodiversity conservation and manage the impacts of kangaroos.Read moreRead less
Drivers of the live pet trade in Australian reptiles. This project aims to understand the complex trade in live Australian reptiles. The global pet trade is a major threat to biodiversity. This project expects to generate critical new knowledge for combatting the current and future illegal trade in Australian wildlife. Using surveillance of domestic and overseas online markets, and innovative statistical and simulation-based approaches to inform conservation decision-making, the expected outcome ....Drivers of the live pet trade in Australian reptiles. This project aims to understand the complex trade in live Australian reptiles. The global pet trade is a major threat to biodiversity. This project expects to generate critical new knowledge for combatting the current and future illegal trade in Australian wildlife. Using surveillance of domestic and overseas online markets, and innovative statistical and simulation-based approaches to inform conservation decision-making, the expected outcomes of this project include an enhanced capacity to conserve native species and to monitor and disrupt the complex illegal wildlife trade. This should provide significant benefits in terms of biodiversity conservation and safeguarding Australia’s unique and ecologically important native reptile species.Read moreRead less
Optimising seed sourcing for effective ecological restoration. This project aims to address the sourcing of native seed for ecological restoration under global change. The great demand for native seed to deliver ecological restoration provides a clear need and responsibility to use this seed as efficiently as possible. This project expects to develop detailed new knowledge that links plant and environmental genomics, plant physiology, seed and soil biology in embedded experiments at post-mining ....Optimising seed sourcing for effective ecological restoration. This project aims to address the sourcing of native seed for ecological restoration under global change. The great demand for native seed to deliver ecological restoration provides a clear need and responsibility to use this seed as efficiently as possible. This project expects to develop detailed new knowledge that links plant and environmental genomics, plant physiology, seed and soil biology in embedded experiments at post-mining rehabilitation sites. Expected outcomes include clear industry guidelines that refine seed sourcing strategies for ecological restoration for current and future climates. This should provide significant benefits for improved ecological restoration outcomes when using native seed today and into the future.Read moreRead less
Impacts of locust control pesticides on arid-zone fauna. Impacts of locust control pesticides on arid-zone fauna. This project aims to understand how different animals encounter pesticide in the landscape through quantifying residue deposition in arid grasslands and investigating how pesticides used to control locust plagues affect fauna. This project will investigate fenitrothion and fipronil, the main pesticides used in Australia for locust control. It will develop a deposition model for aeria ....Impacts of locust control pesticides on arid-zone fauna. Impacts of locust control pesticides on arid-zone fauna. This project aims to understand how different animals encounter pesticide in the landscape through quantifying residue deposition in arid grasslands and investigating how pesticides used to control locust plagues affect fauna. This project will investigate fenitrothion and fipronil, the main pesticides used in Australia for locust control. It will develop a deposition model for aerial pesticide spraying, determine the short-term effect of sprayed pesticides on the behaviour and condition of free-ranging target fauna that use the environment differently, and quantify the relative importance of dietary and non-dietary exposure routes to gauge the importance of animal behaviour on pesticide exposure. Anticipated outcomes are improved baseline assessments for locusticides.Read moreRead less
Designing successful genetic-rescue approaches for threatened species. This project aims to determine how threatened populations of inbred native species can be 'genetically rescued' by introducing genetically healthy individuals. This is significant because Australia is a global hotspot of extinctions and threatened species, so tools that can be used to offset extinction risk will benefit entire ecosystems at risk. We will focus on two inbred populations of koalas in South Australia to (1) meas ....Designing successful genetic-rescue approaches for threatened species. This project aims to determine how threatened populations of inbred native species can be 'genetically rescued' by introducing genetically healthy individuals. This is significant because Australia is a global hotspot of extinctions and threatened species, so tools that can be used to offset extinction risk will benefit entire ecosystems at risk. We will focus on two inbred populations of koalas in South Australia to (1) measure and map patterns of genetic diversity, (2) map densities and track individuals to measure demography, (3) develop advanced spatial models that combine population demography and genetic processes to predict the effectiveness of genetic rescue, and (4) source and rear healthy individuals to test our predictions.Read moreRead less
Identifying cost-effective reforestation approaches for biodiversity conservation and carbon sequestration in southern Australia. The project will determine the reforestation approach that maximises the native biodiversity found in bushland/shrubland regrowth in South Australia, while maximising the carbon sequestered for the lowest cost. This project will use controlled planting experiments modifying tree/shrub diversity and plant density combined with species and carbon monitoring.