ORCID Profile
0000-0002-1560-5235
Current Organisation
Deakin University
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Research Topics
In Research Link Australia (RLA), "Research Topics" refer to ANZSRC FOR and SEO codes. These topics are either sourced from ANZSRC FOR and SEO codes listed in researchers' related grants or generated by a large language model (LLM) based on their publications.
Top 5 Research Topics
ANZSRC Field of Research (FoR)
Environmental Science and Management | Conservation And Biodiversity | Ecological Applications | Surfacewater Hydrology | Wildlife and Habitat Management | Archaeology Of Hunter-Gatherer Societies (Incl. Pleistocene | Natural Resource Management | Land And Parks Management | Evolutionary Impacts of Climate Change | Ecological Impacts of Climate Change | Invasive Species Ecology | Conservation and Biodiversity | Terrestrial Ecology | Landscape Ecology | Palaeoecology |
ANZSRC Socio-Economic Objective (SEO)
Integrated (ecosystem) assessment and management | Integrated (ecosystem) assessment and management | Control of Animal Pests, Diseases and Exotic Species in Forest and Woodlands Environments | Ecosystem Assessment and Management of Forest and Woodlands Environments | Living resources (flora and fauna) | Biological sciences | Integrated (ecosystem) assessment and management | Climate change | Mountain and High Country Flora, Fauna and Biodiversity | Mountain and High Country Land and Water Management | Forest and Woodlands Flora, Fauna and Biodiversity | Ecosystem Assessment and Management of Mountain and High Country Environments
Related Links
Publications
Traits influence reptile responses to fire in a fragmented agricultural landscape
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 19-07-2022
DOI: 10.1007/S10980-022-01417-9
Abstract: Habitat loss and fragmentation can interact with other threats, including altered fire regimes, and responses to these effects can be mediated by functional traits. To determine how richness and abundance of reptile trait groups respond to habitat fragmentation, patch isolation and fire. We surveyed reptiles in 30 sites over 3 years. Sites in remnant patches in farmland were adjacent to a conservation park with either recently burnt or long-unburnt habitat. The remnant patches were stratified by distance from the reserve. Sites were spatially paired, and we experimentally burnt one of each pair in farmland. Trait groups included size, reproduction, habitat position, diet, and activity period. None of the trait groups benefited from experimental burns, while the burns reduced abundance of viviparous, small, and above-ground species. Species richness was lower in isolated sites than in sites close to the conservation park, while generalist trait groups appeared unaffected by patch isolation. Large-sized reptiles had higher abundance in remnants. There was not more rapid colonisation of burnt sites near recently burnt conservation park. Instead, low initial abundance may have been caused by fire in combination with drought, with high rainfall during the study allowing recovery and spill-over into adjacent remnants. Landscape structure appears to interact with natural fires, restoration burns and longer-term climatic trends to influence the abundance and distribution of reptiles. Traits mediate responses, enabling us to formulate a set of testable mechanistic hypotheses, which illustrates a pathway to generalisation and prediction.
Successional specialization in a reptile community cautions against widespread planned burning and complete fire suppression
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 20-06-2013
Pasture height and crop direction influence reptile movement in an agricultural matrix
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2016
Measuring competitive impact: Joint‐species modelling of invaded plant communities
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 06-10-2019
Life history influences how fire affects genetic diversity in two lizard species
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 05-2014
DOI: 10.1111/MEC.12757
Abstract: 'Fire mosaics' are often maintained in landscapes to promote successional ersity in vegetation with little understanding of how this will affect ecological processes in animal populations such as dispersal, social organization and re-establishment. To investigate these processes, we conducted a replicated, spatiotemporal landscape genetics study of two Australian woodland lizard species [Amphibolurus norrisi (Agamidae) and Ctenotus atlas (Scincidae)]. Agamids have a more complex social and territory structure than skinks, so fire might have a greater impact on their population structure and thus genetic ersity. Genetic ersity increased with time since fire in C. atlas and decreased with time since fire in A. norrisi. For C. atlas, this might reflect its increasing population size after fire, but we could not detect increased gene flow that would reduce the loss of genetic ersity through genetic drift. Using landscape resistance analyses, we found no evidence that postfire habitat succession or topography affected gene flow in either species and we were unable to distinguish between survival and immigration as modes of postfire re-establishment. In A. norrisi, we detected female-biased dispersal, likely reflecting its territorial social structure and polygynous mating system. The increased genetic ersity in A. norrisi in recently burnt habitat might reflect a temporary disruption of its territoriality and increased male dispersal, a hypothesis that was supported with a simulation experiment. Our results suggest that the effects of disturbance on genetic ersity will be stronger for species with territorial social organization.
Reptiles in restored agricultural landscapes: The value of linear strips, patches and habitat condition
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 10-04-2014
DOI: 10.1111/ACV.12121
Contrasting beetle assemblage responses to cultivated farmlands and native woodlands in a dynamic agricultural landscape
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 12-2017
DOI: 10.1002/ECS2.2042
Does hollow occurrence vary with forest type? A case study in wet and dry Eucalyptus obliqua forest
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 06-2008
The use of traits to interpret responses to large scale - edge effects: a study of epigaeic beetle assemblages across a Eucalyptus forest and pine plantation edge
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 21-03-2016
New pasture plants intensify invasive species risk
Publisher: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Date: 03-11-2014
Abstract: Governments spend billions of dollars each year managing invasive plant species. Many invasive plants have escaped from pastures and now degrade natural areas and transform ecosystems. New pasture taxa are promoted to help achieve sustainable intensification of agriculture by increasing production without using more land. However, plant characteristics that increase production also increase invasion risk. Combined with inadequate regulation and management to establish large feed-plant populations, new taxa will likely exacerbate problems with invasive species. Livestock production accounts for 30% of the world's land area. Risks associated with invasive feed-plants have been largely overlooked, even by studies explicitly critiquing the environmental risks of sustainable intensification. We suggest a suite of protocols to reduce these risks in sustainable intensification of agriculture.
Restoration rocks: integrating abiotic and biotic habitat restoration to conserve threatened species and reduce fire fuel load
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 17-05-2016
The Diverse Impacts of Grazing, Fire and Weeds: How Ecological Theory Can Inform Conservation Management
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 15-10-2008
The relative importance of aquatic and terrestrial variables for frogs in an urbanizing landscape: Key insights for sustainable urban development
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2017
Beetle responses to habitat fragmentation depend on ecological traits, habitat condition, and remnant size
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 19-01-2005
Fragmentation affects plant community composition over time
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 14-12-2016
DOI: 10.1111/ECOG.02607
Invasive plants: New pasture plants pose weed risk
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 12-2014
DOI: 10.1038/516037E
Covariation of soil nutrients drives occurrence of exotic and native plant species
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 30-08-2018
Automatic Detection of Moving Baw Baw Frogs in Camera Trap Videos
Publisher: IEEE
Date: 08-2018
Protein requirements for growth in male and female Saanen goats
Publisher: FapUNIFESP (SciELO)
Date: 11-2015
Assembly rules are rare in SE Australian bird communities, but sometimes apply in fragmented agricultural landscapes
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 10-2010
Are incentive programs working? Landowner attitudes to ecological restoration of agricultural landscapes
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2013
DOI: 10.1016/J.JENVMAN.2013.04.034
Abstract: Private property accounts for much of the planet's arable land, and most of this has been cleared for agricultural production. Agricultural areas retain only fragments of their original vegetation and this has been detrimental to many native plant and animal species. Habitat restoration and revegetation may be able to reconnect and enlarge existing remnant areas in agricultural landscapes and, thereby, enhance native plant and animal communities. However, conservation initiatives will be successful only if landowners actively participate in restoration actions. This study used four hundred postal questionnaires to assess the degree to which landowners in two regions of south-eastern Australia adopt restoration activities, their opinions regarding remnant and revegetated land and their management actions in these areas. One hundred and seventy nine completed questionnaires were received. Three quarters of respondents had undertaken restoration on their property or were planning to revegetate in the future. Landcare members were most likely to have previously revegetated and future revegetation intentions were best predicted by previous restoration activities and a primary income source that was off-farm. Landowners were more likely to manage restored and remnant areas if they perceived threats such as weeds, pest animals and fire risk would be detrimental to their property, than to enhance environmental outcomes. These results indicate that landowners are interested in restoring natural areas, but without greater assistance to restore ground layers and manage perceived threats posed by fire and invasive plants and animals, restoration actions will not have their desired bio ersity benefits.
Dominant drivers of seedling establishment in a fire-dependent obligate seeder: Climate or fire regimes?
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 10-10-2014
Priorities in policy and management when existing biodiversity stressors interact with climate-change
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 29-07-2012
Is the matrix a sea? Habitat specificity in a naturally fragmented landscape
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 17-01-2005
Sex effects on net protein and energy requirements for growth of Saanen goats
Publisher: American Dairy Science Association
Date: 06-2017
Abstract: Requirements for growth in the different sexes remain poorly quantified in goats. The objective of this study was to develop equations for estimating net protein (NP
Reptiles on the brink: identifying the Australian terrestrial snake and lizard species most at risk of extinction
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2021
DOI: 10.1071/PC20033
Abstract: Australia hosts approximately 10% of the world’s reptile species, the largest number of any country. Despite this and evidence of widespread decline, the first comprehensive assessment of the conservation status of Australian terrestrial squamates (snakes and lizards) was undertaken only recently. Here we apply structured expert elicitation to the 60 species assessed to be in the highest IUCN threat categories to estimate their probability of extinction by 2040. We also assessed the probability of successful reintroduction for two Extinct in the Wild (EW) Christmas Island species with trial reintroductions underway. Collation and analysis of expert opinion indicated that six species are at high risk (& %) of becoming extinct within the next 20 years, and up to 11 species could be lost within this timeframe unless management improves. The consensus among experts was that neither of the EW species were likely to persist outside of small fenced areas without a significant increase in resources for intense threat management. The 20 most imperilled species are all restricted in range, with three occurring only on islands. The others are endemic to a single state, with 55% occurring in Queensland. Invasive species (notably weeds and introduced predators) were the most prevalent threats, followed by agriculture, natural system modifications (primarily fire) and climate change. Increased resourcing and management intervention are urgently needed to avert the impending extinction of Australia’s imperilled terrestrial reptiles.
Empirical tests of metacommunity theory using an isolation gradient
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 08-2009
DOI: 10.1890/08-1114.1
Fire management for biodiversity conservation: Key research questions and our capacity to answer them
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2010
The co‐benefits of biodiversity citizen science for well‐being and nature relatedness
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 24-10-2023
DOI: 10.1111/APHW.12502
Temperate Woodland Conservation and Management
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2010
Abstract: This book summarises the main discoveries, management insights and policy initiatives in the science, management and policy arenas associated with temperate woodlands in Australia. More than 60 of Australia’s leading researchers, policy makers and natural resource managers have contributed to the volume. It features new perspectives on the integration of woodland management and agricultural production, including the latest thinking about whole of paddock restoration and carbon farming, as well as financial and social incentive schemes to promote woodland conservation and management. Temperate Woodland Conservation and Management will be a key supporting aid for farmers, natural resource managers, policy makers, and people involved in NGO landscape restoration and management.
Changing dominance of key plant species across a Mediterranean climate region: implications for fuel types and future fire regimes
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 29-11-2013
Science denialism and compassionate conservation
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 10-01-2019
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.13273
Resolving future fire management conflicts using multicriteria decision making
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 02-11-2016
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.12580
Abstract: Management strategies to reduce the risks to human life and property from wildfire commonly involve burning native vegetation. However, planned burning can conflict with other societal objectives such as human health and bio ersity conservation. These conflicts are likely to intensify as fire regimes change under future climates and as growing human populations encroach farther into fire-prone ecosystems. Decisions about managing fire risks are therefore complex and warrant more sophisticated approaches than are typically used. We applied a multicriteria decision making approach (MCDA) with the potential to improve fire management outcomes to the case of a highly populated, bio erse, and flammable wildland-urban interface. We considered the effects of 22 planned burning options on 8 objectives: house protection, maximizing water quality, minimizing carbon emissions and impacts on human health, and minimizing declines of 5 distinct species types. The MCDA identified a small number of management options (burning forest adjacent to houses) that performed well for most objectives, but not for one species type (arboreal mammal) or for water quality. Although MCDA made the conflict between objectives explicit, resolution of the problem depended on the weighting assigned to each objective. Additive weighting of criteria traded off the arboreal mammal and water quality objectives for other objectives. Multiplicative weighting identified scenarios that avoided poor outcomes for any objective, which is important for avoiding potentially irreversible bio ersity losses. To distinguish reliably among management options, future work should focus on reducing uncertainty in outcomes across a range of objectives. Considering management actions that have more predictable outcomes than landscape fuel management will be important. We found that, where data were adequate, an MCDA can support decision making in the complex and often conflicted area of fire management.
Complex responses of birds to landscape‐level fire extent, fire severity and environmental drivers
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 29-01-2014
DOI: 10.1111/DDI.12172
Urbanization Impacts on Mammals across Urban-Forest Edges and a Predictive Model of Edge Effects
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 08-05-2014
Expanding the Role of Targets in Conservation Policy
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2018
DOI: 10.1016/J.TREE.2018.08.014
Abstract: Conservation targets perform beneficial auxiliary functions that are rarely acknowledged, including raising awareness, building partnerships, promoting investment, and developing new knowledge. Building on these auxiliary functions could enable more rapid progress towards current targets and inform the design of future targets.
Predation risk for reptiles is highest at remnant edges in agricultural landscapes
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 04-10-2018
Species co-occurrence networks show reptile community reorganization under agricultural transformation
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 13-09-2018
DOI: 10.1111/ECOG.03079
A hybrid zone defined by allozymes and ventral colour in Geocrinia rosea (Anura:Myobatrachidae)
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2007
DOI: 10.1071/ZO08020
Abstract: The frog Geocrinia rosea is highly genetically sub ided with a major genetic ision between northern and southern populations. Previous research did not s le a region spanning 12 km between these two populations. We report the distribution of G. rosea in the uns led area and identify a geographically restricted hybrid zone. Boundaries of genetic groups were defined using two allozyme loci in 13 populations and ventral colouration. G. rosea was not continuously distributed in the area of parapatry. At the only point where the northern and southern groups met, there was a single hybrid population with genotypes demonstrating substantial interbreeding. Colour patterns implied a slightly broader hybrid zone, with four populations showing ventral colour introgression. Northern populations tended to have pink bellies whereas southern populations generally had orange bellies. We conclude that the two groups have erged in allopatry and have formed a very narrow hybrid zone after range expansion. The magnitude of allozyme ergence between the four currently recognised species in the G. rosea complex is similar to the ergence between northern and southern G. rosea and is much greater than the ergence between other intraspecific groups. Taxonomic revision may therefore be warranted.
Beetle’s responses to edges in fragmented landscapes are driven by adjacent farmland use, season and cross-habitat movement
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 28-10-2018
Animal movement varies with resource availability, landscape configuration and body size: a conceptual model and empirical example
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 15-03-2019
Animal movements in fire-prone landscapes
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 18-12-2019
DOI: 10.1111/BRV.12486
Abstract: Movement is a trait of fundamental importance in ecosystems subject to frequent disturbances, such as fire-prone ecosystems. Despite this, the role of movement in facilitating responses to fire has received little attention. Herein, we consider how animal movement interacts with fire history to shape species distributions. We consider how fire affects movement between habitat patches of differing fire histories that occur across a range of spatial and temporal scales, from daily foraging bouts to infrequent dispersal events, and annual migrations. We review animal movements in response to the immediate and abrupt impacts of fire, and the longer-term successional changes that fires set in train. We discuss how the novel threats of altered fire regimes, landscape fragmentation, and invasive species result in suboptimal movements that drive populations downwards. We then outline the types of data needed to study animal movements in relation to fire and novel threats, to hasten the integration of movement ecology and fire ecology. We conclude by outlining a research agenda for the integration of movement ecology and fire ecology by identifying key research questions that emerge from our synthesis of animal movements in fire-prone ecosystems.
A long-term habitat fragmentation experiment leads to morphological change in a species of carabid beetle
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 28-12-2018
DOI: 10.1111/EEN.12498
Interactive effects of land use, grazing and environment on frogs in an agricultural landscape
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2019
A biodiversity-crisis hierarchy to evaluate and refine conservation indicators
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 26-03-2018
DOI: 10.1038/S41559-018-0504-8
Abstract: The Convention on Biological Diversity and its Strategic Plan for Bio ersity 2011-2020 form the central pillar of the world's conservation commitment, with 196 signatory nations yet its capacity to reign in catastrophic bio ersity loss has proved inadequate. Indicators suggest that few of the Convention on Biological Diversity's Aichi targets that aim to reduce bio ersity loss will be met by 2020. While the indicators have been criticized for only partially representing the targets, a bigger problem is that the indicators do not adequately draw attention to and measure all of the drivers of the bio ersity crisis. Here, we show that many key drivers of bio ersity loss are either poorly evaluated or entirely lacking indicators. We use a bio ersity-crisis hierarchy as a conceptual model linking drivers of change to bio ersity loss to evaluate the scope of current indicators. We find major gaps related to monitoring governments, human population size, corruption and threat-industries. We recommend the hierarchy is used to develop an expanded set of indicators that comprehensively monitor the human behaviour and institutions that drive bio ersity loss and that, so far, have impeded progress towards achieving global bio ersity targets.
How to find a metapopulation
Publisher: Canadian Science Publishing
Date: 10-2007
DOI: 10.1139/Z07-096
Abstract: Where habitat loss and fragmentation is severe, many native species are likely to have reduced levels of dispersal between remnant populations. For those species to avoid regional extinction in fragmented landscapes, they must undergo some kind of metapopulation dynamics so that local extinctions are countered by recolonisation. The importance of spatial dynamics for regional survival means that research into metapopulation dynamics is essential. In this review I explore the approaches taken to examine metapopulation dynamics, highlight the analytical methods used to get the most information out of field data, and discover some of the major research gaps. Statistical models, including Hanski’s incidence function model (IFM) are frequently applied to presence–absence data, an approach that is often strengthened using long-term data sets that document extinctions and colonisations. Recent developments are making the IFM more biologically realistic and expanding the range of situations for which the model is relevant. Although accurate predictions using the IFM seem unlikely, it may be useful for ranking management decisions. A key weakness of presence–absence modelling is that the mechanisms underlying spatial dynamics remain inferential, so combining modelling approaches with detailed demographic research is warranted. For species where very large data sets cannot be obtained to facilitate statistical modelling, a demographic approach alone or with stochastic modelling may be the only viable research angle to take. Dispersal is a central process in metapopulation dynamics. Research combining mark–recapture or telemetry methods with model-selection procedures demonstrate that dispersal is frequently oversimplified in conceptual and statistical metapopulation models. Dispersal models like the island model that underlies classic metapopulation theory do not approximate the behaviour of real species in fragmented landscapes. Nevertheless, it remains uncertain if additional biological realism will improve predictions of statistical metapopulation models. Genetic methods can give better estimates of dispersal than direct methods and take less effort, so they should be routinely explored alongside direct ecological methods. Recent development of metacommunity theory (communities connected by dispersal) emphasises a range of mechanisms that complement metapopulation theory. Taking both theories into account will enhance interpretation of field data. The extent of metapopulation dynamics in human modified landscapes remains uncertain, but we have a powerful array of field and analytical approaches for reducing this knowledge gap. The most informative way forward requires that many species are studied in the same fragmented landscape by applying a selection of approaches that reveal complementary aspects of spatial dynamics.
Detectability of the global weed Hypochaeris radicata is influenced by species, environment and observer characteristics
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 07-12-2013
DOI: 10.1093/JPE/RTU032
Reptile responses to anthropogenic habitat modification: A global meta-analysis
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 20-03-2020
DOI: 10.1111/GEB.13091
Restoration of a declining foundation plant species: Testing the roles of competitor suppression, fire reintroduction and herbivore exclusion
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 12-05-2022
Abstract: Maintaining ecosystem processes within patches of remnant vegetation is critical to minimising bio ersity loss in agricultural landscapes. Foundation species—habitat‐forming organisms that interact with many other species—are therefore a priority for conservation and restoration in farming areas. Triodia spp. grasses are foundation species of arid and semi‐arid Australia that largely depend on fire for recruitment, but fire is suppressed or excluded in many agricultural areas. We tested the effectiveness of controlled burns and competitor removal (exotic and native grasses), both in isolation and combined, on recruitment rates of Triodia scariosa in remnant vegetation using a before‐after, control‐impact study across 126 plots. A subset of plots were located in an herbivore exclusion area inside a reserve. There was no recruitment of T. scariosa 1 year after burning, regardless of treatment or control, and the burns killed all existing plants. However, T. scariosa germinated by 2 years post‐burn, with the greatest recruitment in sites where both burning and grass removal were applied. Two years after burning, T. scariosa abundance (adults and recruits) remained low outside reserves, but returned to original levels in reserves and in areas where large herbivores were excluded. Synthesis and applications . Despite failing to increase overall abundance, we show that restoration of a foundation plant species in degraded, agricultural landscapes can be achieved through a combination of fire reintroduction and competitor suppression. Germination trials from soil s les suggest a depleted seed bank limited recruitment rates, and therefore emphasise the importance of carefully timing restoration actions to overcome recruitment bottlenecks.
Incorporating regional-scale ecological knowledge to improve the effectiveness of large-scale conservation programmes
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 11-03-2016
DOI: 10.1111/ACV.12267
Dispersal and phylogeography of the agamid lizard Amphibolurus nobbi in fragmented and continuous habitat
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 12-04-2005
Conceptual domain of the matrix in fragmented landscapes
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2013
Monitoring ecological consequences of efforts to restore landscape-scale connectivity
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2017
A critique of 'countryside biogeography' as a guide to research in human‐dominated landscapes
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 27-09-2019
DOI: 10.1111/JBI.13712
Plantations, not farmlands, cause biotic homogenisation of ground-active beetles in south-eastern Australia
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 06-2015
The frequency of metapopulations, metacommunities and nestedness in a fragmented landscape
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 22-11-2008
Post-fire succession affects abundance and survival but not detectability in a knob-tailed gecko
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2012
A Smart Camera Trap for Detection of Endotherms and Ectotherms
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 28-05-2022
DOI: 10.3390/S22114094
Abstract: Current camera traps use passive infrared triggers therefore, they only capture images when animals have a substantially different surface body temperature than the background. Endothermic animals, such as mammals and birds, provide adequate temperature contrast to trigger cameras, while ectothermic animals, such as hibians, reptiles, and invertebrates, do not. Therefore, a camera trap that is capable of monitoring ectotherms can expand the capacity of ecological research on ectothermic animals. This study presents the design, development, and evaluation of a solar-powered and artificial-intelligence-assisted camera trap system with the ability to monitor both endothermic and ectothermic animals. The system is developed using a central processing unit, integrated graphics processing unit, camera, infrared light, flash drive, printed circuit board, solar panel, battery, microphone, GPS receiver, temperature/humidity sensor, light sensor, and other customized circuitry. It continuously monitors image frames using a motion detection algorithm and commences recording when a moving animal is detected during the day or night. Field trials demonstrate that this system successfully recorded a high number of animals. Lab testing using artificially generated motion demonstrated that the system successfully recorded within video frames at a high accuracy of 0.99, providing an optimized peak power consumption of 5.208 W. No water or dust entered the cases during field trials. A total of 27 cameras saved 85,870 video segments during field trials, of which 423 video segments successfully recorded ectothermic animals (reptiles, hibians, and arthropods). This newly developed camera trap will benefit wildlife biologists, as it successfully monitors both endothermic and ectothermic animals.
Seed addition and biomass removal key to restoring native forbs in degraded temperate grassland
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 07-01-2018
DOI: 10.1111/AVSC.12352
Competition in the Historical Niche: A Response to Scheele et al.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 03-2018
Energy requirements and efficiency of energy utilization in growing dairy goats of different sexes
Publisher: American Dairy Science Association
Date: 2020
Abstract: The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of sex on the requirements for maintenance and efficiency of energy utilization in growing Saanen goats. A database from 7 comparative slaughter studies that included 238 Saanen goats was gathered to provide information for the development of prediction equations of energy requirements for maintenance and efficiency of energy utilization. The experimental design provided different levels of metabolizable energy intake (MEI) and empty body weight (EBW). The data were analyzed so that sex (e.g., intact males, castrated males, and females n = 98, 80, and 60, respectively) was a fixed effect, and blocks nested in the studies and goat sex were random effects. For the development of linear and nonlinear equations, we used the MIXED and NLMIXED procedures in SAS (SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC). Nonlinear regression equations were developed to predict heat production (HP, kcal/kg
Few beetle species can be detected with 95% confidence using pitfall traps
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 21-01-2010
How does ecological disturbance influence genetic diversity?
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2013
DOI: 10.1016/J.TREE.2013.08.005
Abstract: Environmental disturbance underpins the dynamics and ersity of many of the ecosystems of the world, yet its influence on the patterns and distribution of genetic ersity is poorly appreciated. We argue here that disturbance history may be the major driver that shapes patterns of genetic ersity in many natural populations. We outline how disturbance influences genetic ersity through changes in both selective processes and demographically driven, selectively neutral processes. Our review highlights the opportunities and challenges presented by genetic approaches, such as landscape genomics, for better understanding and predicting the demographic and evolutionary responses of natural populations to disturbance. Developing this understanding is now critical because disturbance regimes are changing rapidly in a human-modified world.
Spatial dynamics of the knob-tailed gecko Nephrurus stellatus in a fragmented agricultural landscape
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 27-03-2012
Low impact of chytridiomycosis on frog recruitment enables persistence in refuges despite high adult mortality
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2015
Reptiles and frogs use most land cover types as habitat in a fine‐grained agricultural landscape
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 02-03-2018
DOI: 10.1111/AEC.12587
Energy requirements for growth in male and female Saanen goats1
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 08-2015
Abstract: The aim of this study was to investigate the energy requirements of female and intact and castrated male Saanen goats. Animals were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 experiments designed to investigate the energy requirements for maintenance and gain. To determine the maintenance requirements, 85 goats were used (26 intact males, 30 castrated males, and 29 females) with an initial BW of 30.3 ± 0.87 kg. Thirty goats (8 intact males, 9 castrated males, and 13 females) were slaughtered to be used as the baseline group. The remaining goats were assigned in a split-plot design using a 3 × 3 factorial arrangement (3 sexes-intact males, castrated males, and females-and 3 DMI levels-ad libitum and restricted fed to 75 or 50% of the ad libitum intake). The NE was obtained using 65 goats (20 intact males, 22 castrated males, and 23 females) fed ad libitum in a completely randomized design. Eight intact males, 9 castrated males, and 13 females were slaughtered at 30.5 ± 1.53 kg BW. Seventeen goats (6 intact males, 6 castrated males, and 5 females) were slaughtered at 38.1 ± 0.49 kg BW. The remaining goats were slaughtered at 44.0 ± 0.50 kg BW. The NE did not differ between the sexes ( = 0.59 258.5 kJ/kg BW), resulting in a ME for maintenance of 412.4 kJ/kg BW. The estimated energy use efficiency for maintenance was 0.627. During the growth phase, NE differed between the sexes ( < 0.001) intact males, castrated males, and females showed an average NE equal to 15.2, 18.6, and 22.7 MJ/kg of empty weight gain, respectively. The energy requirements for growth differed between the sexes. The difference was found to be due to distinct NE and partial efficiency of ME utilization for growth in intact and castrated males and females during the late growth phase. This study may contribute to adjustments in feeding system energy recommendations regarding the NE and NE found for goats during the late growth phase.
Season of fire influences seed dispersal by wind in a serotinous obligate seeding tree
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 03-2019
Reptiles and frogs conform to multiple conceptual landscape models in an agricultural landscape
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 14-09-2017
DOI: 10.1111/DDI.12628
Determinants of growth of the flammable grass, Triodia scariosa: Consequences for fuel dynamics under climate change in the Mediterranean region of South Eastern Australia
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 25-02-2016
DOI: 10.1111/AEC.12348
Fine‐scale variables associated with the presence of native forbs in natural temperate grassland
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 28-02-2020
DOI: 10.1111/AEC.12866
Abstract: Broad‐scale threats to floristic ersity in native temperate grasslands are well‐documented and include elevated soil nutrients, changes in disturbance regimes and exotic species. However, fine‐scale variables associated with the presence of native forbs, such as gap size and biomass cover, have received relatively little attention. We conducted a case–control study to determine the relative influence of physical structural dimensions and other fine‐scale variables associated with the presence of native forbs in a modified temperate grassland previously used for domestic grazing. We matched 145 case plots centred on 27 different species of native forbs with 290 control plots not centred on a native forb. For each percentage increase in ground litter cover, dead biomass cover, grass cover or exotic forb cover, or the area of bare ground within 30 cm, the relative odds that a native forb was present vs absent declined by a mean of 10–13%. Living and dead biomass reduces light availability, and the former can also reduce nutrient and water availability. Declines in the presence of native forbs associated with increasing total bare ground may suggest that gap sizes were too small or the soil surface condition too degraded. Our results add to a body of evidence suggesting that native forbs in temperate native grassland are likely to benefit from periodic removal of living and dead grass biomass and a reduction in the cover of exotic forbs.
Amphibians in agricultural landscapes: the habitat value of crop areas, linear plantings and remnant woodland patches
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 12-08-2018
DOI: 10.1111/ACV.12437
Land management practices associated with house loss in wildfires
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 18-01-2012
Primers for novel microsatellite markers in “fire-specialist” lizards (Amphibolurus norrisi, Ctenotus atlas and Nephrurus stellatus) and their performance across multiple populations
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 16-12-2010
The use of topographic fire refuges by the greater glider (Petauroides volans) and the mountain brushtail possum (Trichosurus cunninghami) following a landscape-scale fire
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2015
DOI: 10.1071/AM14027
Abstract: We examined the abundance of arboreal marsupials in topographic fire refuges after a major fire in a stand-replacing crown-fire forest ecosystem. We surveyed the abundance of arboreal marsupials across 48 sites in rainforest gullies burnt to differing extents by the 2009 fires in the mountain ash (Eucalyptus regnans) forests of the Victorian Central Highlands, Australia. The greater glider (Petauroides volans) was less abundant within the extent of the 2009 fire. The mountain brushtail possum (Trichosurus cunninghami) was more abundant within the extent of the 2009 fire, particularly within unburnt peninsulas protruding into burnt areas from unburnt edges. Our results indicate that fire refuges may facilitate the persistence of some species within extensively burnt landscapes. Additional work should seek to clarify this finding and identify the demographic mechanisms underlying this response.
How many common reptile species are fire specialists? A replicated natural experiment highlights the predictive weakness of a fire succession model
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2008
Identifying the location of fire refuges in wet forest ecosystems
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 12-2015
DOI: 10.1890/14-1699.1
Abstract: The increasing frequency of large, high-severity fires threatens the survival of old-growth specialist fauna in fire-prone forests. Within topographically erse montane forests, areas that experience less severe or fewer fires compared with those prevailing in the landscape may present unique resource opportunities enabling old-growth specialist fauna to survive. Statistical landscape models that identify the extent and distribution of potential fire refuges may assist land managers to incorporate these areas into relevant bio ersity conservation strategies. We used a case study in an Australian wet montane forest to establish how predictive fire simulation models can be interpreted as management tools to identify potential fire refuges. We examined the relationship between the probability of fire refuge occurrence as predicted by an existing fire refuge model and fire severity experienced during a large wildfire. We also examined the extent to which local fire severity was influenced by fire severity in the surrounding landscape. We used a combination of statistical approaches, including generalized linear modeling, variogram analysis, and receiver operating characteristics and area under the curve analysis (ROC AUC). We found that the amount of unburned habitat and the factors influencing the retention and location of fire refuges varied with fire conditions. Under extreme fire conditions, the distribution of fire refuges was limited to only extremely sheltered, fire-resistant regions of the landscape. During extreme fire conditions, fire severity patterns were largely determined by stochastic factors that could not be predicted by the model. When fire conditions were moderate, physical landscape properties appeared to mediate fire severity distribution. Our study demonstrates that land managers can employ predictive landscape fire models to identify the broader climatic and spatial domain within which fire refuges are likely to be present. It is essential that within these envelopes, forest is protected from logging, roads, and other developments so that the ecological processes related to the establishment and subsequent use of fire refuges are maintained.
Population and individual‐scale responses to patch size, isolation and quality in the hazel dormouse
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 09-2014
DOI: 10.1890/ES14-00115.1
Interventions for Reducing Extinction Risk in Chytridiomycosis-Threatened Amphibians
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 27-06-2014
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.12322
Abstract: Wildlife diseases pose an increasing threat to bio ersity and are a major management challenge. A striking ex le of this threat is the emergence of chytridiomycosis. Despite diagnosis of chytridiomycosis as an important driver of global hibian declines 15 years ago, researchers have yet to devise effective large-scale management responses other than biosecurity measures to mitigate disease spread and the establishment of disease-free captive assurance colonies prior to or during disease outbreaks. We examined the development of management actions that can be implemented after an epidemic in surviving populations. We developed a conceptual framework with clear interventions to guide experimental management and applied research so that further extinctions of hibian species threatened by chytridiomycosis might be prevented. Within our framework, there are 2 management approaches: reducing Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (the fungus that causes chytridiomycosis) in the environment or on hibians and increasing the capacity of populations to persist despite increased mortality from disease. The latter approach emphasizes that mitigation does not necessarily need to focus on reducing disease-associated mortality. We propose promising management actions that can be implemented and tested based on current knowledge and that include habitat manipulation, antifungal treatments, animal translocation, bioaugmentation, head starting, and selection for resistance. Case studies where these strategies are being implemented will demonstrate their potential to save critically endangered species.
Feral horses in the Australian Alps: an introduction to the special issue
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 2019
DOI: 10.1111/EMR.12364
Is the matrix important to butterflies in fragmented landscapes?
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 06-2014
Strong influence of local habitat structure on mammals reveals mismatch with edge effects models
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 25-11-2014
Fire severity alters spatio-temporal movements and habitat utilisation by an arboreal marsupial, the mountain brushtail possum (Trichosurus cunninghami)
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2016
DOI: 10.1071/WF15204
Abstract: Understanding how severe wildfires influence faunal movement is essential for predicting how changes in fire regimes will affect ecosystems. We examined the effects of fire severity distribution on spatial and temporal variation in movement of an Australian arboreal mammal, the mountain brushtail possum (Trichosurus cunninghami). We used GPS telemetry to characterise the movements of 18 possums in landscapes burnt to differing extents by a large wildfire. We identified a temporal change in movement patterns in response to fire. In unburnt landscapes, in iduals moved greater distances early and late in the night and had less overlap in the areas used for foraging and denning, than in high-severity burnt landscapes. Habitat selection was dependent on the spatial context of fire in the surrounding landscape. Forest recently burnt at high severity may provide suitable habitat for species such as the mountain brushtail possum, if protected from subsequent disturbance, such as salvage logging. However, spatial and temporal patterns of habitat use and selection differ considerably between burnt and undisturbed landscapes. The spatial outcomes of ecological disturbances such as wildfires have the potential to alter the behaviour and functional roles of fauna across large areas.
The lost lizards of Christmas Island: A retrospective assessment of factors driving the collapse of a native reptile community
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 13-01-2021
DOI: 10.1111/CSP2.358
Meta‐analysis reveals impacts of disturbance on reptile and amphibian body condition
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 04-07-2023
DOI: 10.1111/GCB.16852
Abstract: Ecosystem disturbance is increasing in extent, severity and frequency across the globe. To date, research has largely focussed on the impacts of disturbance on animal population size, extinction risk and species richness. However, in idual responses, such as changes in body condition, can act as more sensitive metrics and may provide early warning signs of reduced fitness and population declines. We conducted the first global systematic review and meta‐analysis investigating the impacts of ecosystem disturbance on reptile and hibian body condition. We collated 384 effect sizes representing 137 species from 133 studies. We tested how disturbance type, species traits, biome and taxon moderate the impacts of disturbance on body condition. We found an overall negative effect of disturbance on herpetofauna body condition (Hedges' g = −0.37, 95% CI: −0.57, −0.18). Disturbance type was an influential predictor of body condition response and all disturbance types had a negative mean effect. Drought, invasive species and agriculture had the largest effects. The impact of disturbance varied in strength and direction across biomes, with the largest negative effects found within Mediterranean and temperate biomes. In contrast, taxon, body size, habitat specialisation and conservation status were not influential predictors of disturbance effects. Our findings reveal the widespread effects of disturbance on herpetofauna body condition and highlight the potential role of in idual‐level response metrics in enhancing wildlife monitoring. The use of in idual response metrics alongside population and community metrics would deepen our understanding of disturbance impacts by revealing both early impacts and chronic effects within affected populations. This could enable early and more informed conservation management.
Dynamic effects of ground-layer plant communities on beetles in a fragmented farming landscape
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 28-02-2018
Interactions among body size, trophic level, and dispersal traits predict beetle detectability and occurrence responses to fire
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 10-09-2019
DOI: 10.1111/EEN.12798
Disease-associated change in an amphibian life-history trait
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 14-07-2017
DOI: 10.1007/S00442-017-3911-7
Abstract: Emerging pathogens can drive evolutionary shifts in host life-history traits, yet this process remains poorly documented in vertebrate hosts. Amphibian chytridiomycosis, caused by infection with the fungal pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), is the worst recorded wildlife disease and has caused the extinction of over 100 species across multiple continents. A similar number of additional species have experienced mass declines and Bd remains a major source of mortality in many populations of declined species now persisting with the pathogen. Life-history theory predicts that increased extrinsic mortality in Bd-infected populations may alter hibian life-history traits, but this has not been examined. Here, we investigate whether population Bd status is associated with age and size at maturity by comparing long-exposed Bd-infected populations, Bd-free populations, and museum specimens collected prior to Bd emergence for the endangered Australian frog Litoria verreauxii alpina. We show that Bd-infected populations have a higher proportion of males that mature at 1 year of age, and females that mature at 2 years of age, compared to Bd-free populations. Earlier maturation was associated with reduced size at maturity in males. Consistent with life-history theory, our findings may represent an adaptive evolutionary shift towards earlier maturation in response to high Bd-induced mortality. To our knowledge, this study provides the first evidence for a post-metamorphic Bd-associated shift in an hibian life-history trait. Given high mortality in other Bd-challenged species, we suggest that chytridiomycosis may be a substantial new selection pressure shaping life-history traits in impacted hibian species across multiple continents.
Communication: Science censorship is a global issue
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 09-02-2017
DOI: 10.1038/542165B
Citizen science program shows urban areas have lower occurrence of frog species, but not accelerated declines
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 18-11-2015
Effect of infiltration time on the microstructure and mechanical properties of C/C-SiC composite prepared by Si‐Zr10 alloyed melt infiltration
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 04-2015
Roadside connectivity does not increase reptile abundance or richness in a fragmented mallee landscape
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 05-09-2011
Disturbance maintains native and exotic plant species richness in invaded grassy woodlands
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 19-02-2017
DOI: 10.1111/JVS.12513
Fire severity and landscape context effects on arboreal marsupials
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2013
Limited influence of stream networks on the terrestrial movements of three wetland-dependent frog species
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2012
Dispersal responses override density effects on genetic diversity during post-disturbance succession
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 30-03-2016
Abstract: Dispersal fundamentally influences spatial population dynamics but little is known about dispersal variation in landscapes where spatial heterogeneity is generated predominantly by disturbance and succession. We tested the hypothesis that habitat succession following fire inhibits dispersal, leading to declines over time in genetic ersity in the early successional gecko Nephrurus stellatus . We combined a landscape genetics field study with a spatially explicit simulation experiment to determine whether successional patterns in genetic ersity were driven by habitat-mediated dispersal or demographic effects (declines in population density leading to genetic drift). Initial increases in genetic structure following fire were likely driven by direct mortality and rapid population expansion. Subsequent habitat succession increased resistance to gene flow and decreased dispersal and genetic ersity in N. stellatus . Simulated changes in population density alone did not reproduce these results. Habitat-mediated reductions in dispersal, combined with changes in population density, were essential to drive the field-observed patterns. Our study provides a framework for combining demographic, movement and genetic data with simulations to discover the relative influence of demography and dispersal on patterns of landscape genetic structure. Our results suggest that succession can inhibit connectivity among in iduals, opening new avenues for understanding how disturbance regimes influence spatial population dynamics.
Coupling movement and landscape ecology for animal conservation in production landscapes
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 08-08-2018
Abstract: Habitat conversion in production landscapes is among the greatest threats to bio ersity, not least because it can disrupt animal movement. Using the movement ecology framework, we review animal movement in production landscapes, including areas managed for agriculture and forestry. We consider internal and external drivers of altered animal movement and how this affects navigation and motion capacities and population dynamics. Conventional management approaches in fragmented landscapes focus on promoting connectivity using structural changes in the landscape. However, a movement ecology perspective emphasizes that manipulating the internal motivations or navigation capacity of animals represents untapped opportunities to improve movement and the effectiveness of structural connectivity investments. Integrating movement and landscape ecology opens new opportunities for conservation management in production landscapes.
Energy Requirements in Early Life Are Similar for Male and Female Goat Kids
Publisher: Asian Australasian Association of Animal Production Societies
Date: 16-10-2014
Classic metapopulations are rare among common beetle species from a naturally fragmented landscape
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 11-12-2009
DOI: 10.1111/J.1365-2656.2009.01609.X
Abstract: 1. The general importance of metacommunity and metapopulation theories is poorly understood because few studies have examined responses of the suite of species that occupy the same fragmented landscape. In this study, we examined the importance of spatial ecological theories using a large-scale, naturally fragmented landscape. 2. We measured the occurrence and abundance of 44 common beetle species in 31 natural rainforest fragments in Tasmania, Australia. We tested for an effect on beetle distribution of geographic variables (patch area, patch isolation and amount of surrounding habitat) and of environmental variables based on plant species, after first accounting for spatial autocorrelation using principal coordinates of neighbour matrices. The environmental variables described a productivity gradient and a post-fire succession from eucalypt-dominated forest to late-successional rainforest. 3. Few species had distributions consistent with a metapopulation. However, the amount of surrounding habitat and patch isolation influenced the occurrence or abundance of 30% of beetle species, implying that dispersal into or out of patches was an important process. 4. Three species showed a distribution that could arise by interactions with dominant competitors or predators with higher occurrence in small patches. 5. Environmental effects were more commonly observed than spatial effects. Twenty-three per cent of species showed evidence of habitat-driven, deterministic metapopulations. Furthermore, almost half of the species were influenced by the plant succession or productivity gradient, including effects at the within-patch, patch and regional scales. The beetle succession involved an increase in the frequency of many species, and the addition of new species, with little evidence of species turnover. Niche-related ecological theory such as the species-sorting metacommunity theory was therefore the most broadly applicable concept. 6. We conclude that classic and source-sink metapopulations are probably rare in this large-scale, naturally fragmented system, although dispersal processes like those occurring in metapopulations may have a substantial influence on community composition. However, deterministic processes (niche specialisation, species-sorting metacommunities and deterministic metapopulations) drive the occurrence or frequency of the majority of species. We urge further research into the prevalence of spatial ecological processes in large-scale natural ecosystems to expand our understanding of the processes that may be important in nature.
Protein and energy requirements of castrated male Saanen goats
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2015
Guidelines for Using Movement Science to Inform Biodiversity Policy
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 23-06-2015
DOI: 10.1007/S00267-015-0570-5
Abstract: Substantial advances have been made in our understanding of the movement of species, including processes such as dispersal and migration. This knowledge has the potential to improve decisions about bio ersity policy and management, but it can be difficult for decision makers to readily access and integrate the growing body of movement science. This is, in part, due to a lack of synthesis of information that is sufficiently contextualized for a policy audience. Here, we identify key species movement concepts, including mechanisms, types, and moderators of movement, and review their relevance to (1) national bio ersity policies and strategies, (2) reserve planning and management, (3) threatened species protection and recovery, (4) impact and risk assessments, and (5) the prioritization of restoration actions. Based on the review, and considering recent developments in movement ecology, we provide a new framework that draws links between aspects of movement knowledge that are likely the most relevant to each bio ersity policy category. Our framework also shows that there is substantial opportunity for collaboration between researchers and government decision makers in the use of movement science to promote positive bio ersity outcomes.
Somewhat saved: A captive breeding programme for two endemic Christmas Island lizard species, now extinct in the wild
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 30-11-2018
DOI: 10.1017/S0030605316001071
Abstract: As with many islands, Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean has suffered severe bio ersity loss. Its terrestrial lizard fauna comprised five native species, of which four were endemic. These were abundant until at least the late 1970s, but four species declined rapidly thereafter and were last reported in the wild between 2009 and 2013. In response to the decline, a captive breeding programme was established in August 2009. This attempt came too late for the Christmas Island forest skink Emoia nativitatis , whose last known in idual died in captivity in 2014, and for the non-endemic coastal skink Emoia atrocostata . However, two captive populations are now established for Lister's gecko Lepidodactylus listeri and the blue-tailed skink Cryptoblepharus egeriae . The conservation future for these two species is challenging: reintroduction will not be possible until the main threats are identified and controlled.
Large unburnt areas, not small unburnt patches, are needed to conserve avian diversity in fire-prone landscapes
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 27-01-2015
Can the intermediate disturbance hypothesis and information on species traits predict anuran responses to fire?
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 23-01-2012
Are only the strong surviving? Little influence of restoration on beetles (Coleoptera) in an agricultural landscape
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 06-2013
Reply to Proença et al.: Sown biodiverse pastures are not a universal solution to invasion risk
Publisher: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Date: 24-03-2015
Multivariate relationship among body protein, fat, and macrominerals of male and female Saanen goats using canonical correlation analysis
Publisher: FapUNIFESP (SciELO)
Date: 07-10-2028
Genetic structure, metapopulation processes and evolution influence the conservation strategies for two endangered frog species
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 1998
Reptile responses to fire and the risk of post-disturbance sampling bias
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 09-03-2012
The trajectory of dispersal research in conservation biology. Systematic review
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 17-04-2014
Local environmental covariates are important for predicting fire history from tree stem diameters
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2015
DOI: 10.1071/WF15069
Abstract: In fire-prone landscapes, knowing when vegetation was last burnt is important for understanding how species respond to fire and to develop effective fire management strategies. However, fire history is often incomplete or non-existent. We developed a fire-age prediction model for two mallee woodland tree species in southern Australia. The models were based on stem diameters from ~1172 in iduals surveyed along 87 transects. Time since fire accounted for the greatest proportion of the explained variation in stem diameter for our two mallee tree species but variation in mean stem diameters was also influenced by local environmental factors. We illustrate a simple tool that enables time since fire to be predicted based on stem diameter and local covariates. We tested our model against new data but it performed poorly with respect to the mapped fire history. A combination of different covariate effects, variation in among-tree competition, including above- and below-ground competition, and unreliable fire history may have contributed to poor model performance. Understanding how the influence of covariates on stem diameter growth varies spatially is critical for determining the generality of models that predict time since fire. Models that were developed in one region may need to be independently verified before they can be reliably applied in new regions.
The dynamic regeneration niche of a forest following a rare disturbance event
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 05-01-2016
DOI: 10.1111/DDI.12414
Human disturbance causes widespread disruption of animal movement
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 02-2021
DOI: 10.1038/S41559-020-01380-1
Abstract: Disturbance and habitat modification by humans can alter animal movement, leading to negative impacts on fitness, survival and population viability. However, the ubiquity and nature of these impacts across erse taxa has not been quantified. We compiled 208 studies on 167 species from terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems across the globe to assess how human disturbance influences animal movement. We show that disturbance by humans has widespread impacts on the movements of birds, mammals, reptiles, hibians, fish and arthropods. More than two-thirds of 719 cases represented a change in movement of 20% or more, with increases in movement averaging 70% and decreases -37%. Disturbance from human activities, such as recreation and hunting, had stronger impacts on animal movement than habitat modification, such as logging and agriculture. Our results point to a global restructuring of animal movement and emphasize the need to reduce the negative impacts of humans on animal movement.
Effects of time since fire on frog occurrence are altered by isolation, vegetation and fire frequency gradients
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 04-10-2017
DOI: 10.1111/DDI.12659
How fire interacts with habitat loss and fragmentation
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 23-12-2023
DOI: 10.1111/BRV.12687
Dispersal: The Eighth Fire Seasonality Effect on Plants
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 04-2020
Environmental and vegetation variables have a greater influence than habitat fragmentation in structuring lizard communities in remnant urban bushland
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 26-05-2004
Managing uncertainty in movement knowledge for environmental decisions
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 03-12-2018
DOI: 10.1111/CONL.12620
Movement patterns of an arboreal gecko in fragmented agricultural landscapes reveal matrix avoidance
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 04-09-2019
DOI: 10.1111/ACV.12505
Resolving conflicts in fire management using decision theory: asset-protection versus biodiversity conservation
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 08-2010
Disentangling the effects of farmland use, habitat edges, and vegetation structure on ground beetle morphological traits
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 06-06-2018
DOI: 10.1007/S00442-018-4180-9
Abstract: Land-use change due to agriculture has a major influence on arthropod bio ersity, and may influence species differently depending on their traits. It is unclear how species traits vary across different land uses and their edges, with most studies focussing on single habitat types and overlooking edge effects. We examined variation in morphological traits of carabid beetles (Coleoptera:Carabidae) on both sides of edges between woodlands and four adjoining, but contrasting farmland uses in an agricultural landscape. We asked: (1) how do traits differ between woodlands and different adjoining farmland uses (crop, fallow, restoration planting, and woody debris applied over crop), and do effects depend on increasing distances from the farmland-woodland edge? (2) Does vegetation structure explain observed effects of adjoining farmland use and edge effects on these traits? We found that carabid communities varied in body size and shape, including traits associated with diet, robustness, and visual ability. Smaller sized species were associated with woodlands and larger sized species with farmlands. Farmland use further influenced these associations, where woodlands adjoining plantings supported smaller species, while fallows and crops supported larger species. Vegetation structure significantly influenced body size, flying ability, and body shape, and helped explain the effects of farmland use and distance from edges on body size. We highlight the important role of vegetation structure, farmland use, and edge effects in filtering the morphological traits of carabid assemblages across a highly modified agricultural landscape. Our findings suggest that farmland management can influence body size and dispersal-related traits in farmland and adjacent native vegetation.
High adult mortality in disease-challenged frog populations increases vulnerability to drought
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 15-08-2016
Abstract: Pathogen emergence can drive major changes in host population demography, with implications for population dynamics and sensitivity to environmental fluctuations. The hibian disease chytridiomycosis, caused by infection with the fungal pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), is implicated in the severe decline of over 200 hibian species. In species that have declined but not become extinct, Bd persists and can cause substantial ongoing mortality. High rates of mortality associated with Bd may drive major changes in host demography, but this process is poorly understood. Here, we compared population age structure of Bd-infected populations, Bd-free populations and museum specimens collected prior to Bd emergence for the endangered Australian frog, Litoria verreauxii alpina (alpine tree frog). We then used population simulations to investigate how pathogen-associated demographic shifts affect the ability of populations to persist in stochastic environments. We found that Bd-infected populations have a severely truncated age structure associated with very high rates of annual adult mortality. Near-complete annual adult turnover in Bd-infected populations means that in iduals breed once, compared with Bd-free populations where adults may breed across multiple years. Our simulations showed that truncated age structure erodes the capacity of populations to withstand periodic recruitment failure a common challenge for species reproducing in uncertain environments. We document previously undescribed demographic shifts associated with a globally emerging pathogen and demonstrate how these shifts alter host ecology. Truncation of age structure associated with Bd effectively reduces host niche width and can help explain the contraction of L. v. alpina to perennial waterbodies where the risk of drought-induced recruitment failure is low. Reduced capacity to tolerate other sources of mortality may explain variation in decline severity among other chytridiomycosis-challenged species and highlights the potential to mitigate disease impacts through minimizing other sources of mortality.
A succession of theories: purging redundancy from disturbance theory
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 26-11-2014
DOI: 10.1111/BRV.12163
Abstract: The topics of succession and post-disturbance ecosystem recovery have a long and convoluted history. There is extensive redundancy within this body of theory, which has resulted in confusion, and the links among theories have not been adequately drawn. This review aims to distil the unique ideas from the array of theory related to ecosystem change in response to disturbance. This will help to reduce redundancy, and improve communication and understanding between researchers. We first outline the broad range of concepts that have developed over the past century to describe community change in response to disturbance. The body of work spans overlapping succession concepts presented by Clements in 1916, Egler in 1954, and Connell and Slatyer in 1977. Other theories describing community change include state and transition models, biological legacy theory, and the application of functional traits to predict responses to disturbance. Second, we identify areas of overlap of these theories, in addition to highlighting the conceptual and taxonomic limitations of each. In aligning each of these theories with one another, the limited scope and relative inflexibility of some theories becomes apparent, and redundancy becomes explicit. We identify a set of unique concepts to describe the range of mechanisms driving ecosystem responses to disturbance. We present a schematic model of our proposed synthesis which brings together the range of unique mechanisms that were identified in our review. The model describes five main mechanisms of transition away from a post-disturbance community: (i) pulse events with rapid state shifts (ii) stochastic community drift (iii) facilitation (iv) competition and (v) the influence of the initial composition of a post-disturbance community. In addition, stabilising processes such as biological legacies, inhibition or continuing disturbance may prevent a transition between community types. Integrating these six mechanisms with the functional trait approach is likely to improve the predictive capacity of disturbance theory. Finally, we complement our discussion of theory with a case study which emphasises that many post-disturbance theories apply simultaneously to the same ecosystem. Using the well-studied mountain ash (Eucalyptus regnans) forests of south-eastern Australia, we illustrate phenomena that align with six of the theories described in our model of rationalised disturbance theory. We encourage further work to improve our schematic model, increase coverage of disturbance-related theory, and to show how the model may link to, or integrate with, other domains of ecological theory.
Common reptiles unaffected by connectivity or condition in a fragmented farming landscape
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 04-07-2008
Predators, prey or temperature? Mechanisms driving niche use of a foundation plant species by specialist lizards
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 31-03-2021
Abstract: Foundation species interact strongly with other species to profoundly influence communities, such as by providing food, refuge from predators or beneficial microclimates. We tested relative support for these mechanisms using spinifex grass ( Triodia spp.), which is a foundation species of arid Australia that provides habitat for erse lizard communities. We first compared the attributes of live and dead spinifex, bare ground and a structurally similar plant ( Lomandra effusa ), and then tested the relative strength of association of two spinifex specialist lizard species ( Ctenophorus spinodomus and Ctenotus atlas ) with spinifex using a mesocosm experiment. Temperatures were coolest within spinifex compared to bare ground and Lomandra. Invertebrate abundance and the threat of predation were indistinguishable between treatments, suggesting temperature attenuation may be a more important driver. Overall, the dragon C. spinodomus preferred live over dead spinifex, while the skink C. atlas preferred dead spinifex, particularly at warmer air temperatures. However, both species displayed in idual variability in their use of available microhabitats, with some in iduals rarely using spinifex. Our results provide an ex le of temperature attenuation by a foundation species driving niche use by ectothermic animals.
Climatic, vegetation and edaphic influences on the probability of fire across mediterranean woodlands of south‐eastern Australia
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 08-07-2015
DOI: 10.1111/JBI.12547
Consequences of information suppression in ecological and conservation sciences
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 07-09-2021
DOI: 10.1111/CONL.12757
Movement across woodland edges suggests plantations and farmland are barriers to dispersal
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 18-09-2022
Feral horse impacts on threatened plants and animals in sub‐alpine and montane environments in Victoria, Australia
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 2019
DOI: 10.1111/EMR.12352
Conservation or politics? Australia's target to kill 2 million cats
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 19-02-2019
DOI: 10.1111/CONL.12633
Remnant vegetation, plantings and fences are beneficial for reptiles in agricultural landscapes
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 23-05-2017
Fasting heat production of Saanen and Anglo Nubian goats measured using open-circuit facemask respirometry
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 03-04-2016
DOI: 10.1111/JPN.12512
Abstract: This study aimed to establish the heat production (HP) of Saanen and Anglo Nubian goats at absorptive (feeding) and at post-absorptive (fasting) statuses to determine the adequate period of fasting required for the measurement of basal metabolism. Gas exchange was recorded via open-circuit facemask respirometry. Six non-lactating and non-pregnant goats of each breed, Saanen (49.2 ± 3.2 kg of body weight, BW) and Anglo Nubian (64.0 ± 3.0 kg BW), were placed in in idual pens with ad libitum access to the same total mixed ration. After a 3-day feeding period, the animals were subjected to fasting (no feed), and the gas exchange measurement was performed for 30 min at 0, 12, 20, 36, 44, 60 and 68 h after fasting. The daily HP of the Saanen and Anglo Nubian goats averaged 557.4 ± 38.7 and 357.1 ± 35.3 kJ/kg
Modelling the benefits of habitat restoration in socio-ecological systems
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2014
The use of hollow-bearing trees by vertebrate fauna in wet and dry Eucalyptus obliqua forest, Tasmania
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2008
DOI: 10.1071/WR08007
Abstract: The loss of hollow-bearing trees in production forest areas can have large impacts on animal populations that rely on them for shelter. This study facilitates the selection of appropriate trees for retention by examining the proportion and type of trees that were used by vertebrate fauna in mature wet and dry Eucalyptus obliqua forest in Tasmania. Felled trees were searched for hollows and secondary evidence of use by fauna. Classification Trees and Bayesian logistic regression modelling were used to examine the site and tree attributes that best explained the use of a tree by fauna. We did two separate analyses: one using attributes expected to be causally related to hollow use, and a second using attributes that might be correlated with hollow use and could be easily assessed in standing trees. In all, 28% of hollow-bearing trees examined showed evidence of use, which is at the lower end of the scale found in other areas of Australia. The variables most strongly related to the use of a tree were hollow abundance, tree size and senescence. Random Forest modelling indicated that the likelihood of a hollow being used increased with hollow size, particularly hollow depth. Counting the number of hollows in standing trees was the best way to identify a tree that is likely to be used by fauna and this was particularly important for younger and healthier trees. It was recommended that trees to be retained should contain at least one large hollow. It was estimated that 8–15 trees per hectare were used by hollow-using fauna in mature wet and dry E. obliqua forest in Tasmania.
Compact development minimizes the impacts of urban growth on native mammals
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 20-10-2017
Reservoir-host amplification of disease impact in an endangered amphibian
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 12-2017
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.12830
Abstract: Emerging wildlife pathogens are an increasing threat to bio ersity. One of the most serious wildlife diseases is chytridiomycosis, caused by the fungal pathogen, Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), which has been documented in over 500 hibian species. Amphibians vary greatly in their susceptibility to Bd some species tolerate infection, whereas others experience rapid mortality. Reservoir hosts-species that carry infection while maintaining high abundance but are rarely killed by disease-can increase extinction risk in highly susceptible, sympatric species. However, whether reservoir hosts lify Bd in declining hibian species has not been examined. We investigated the role of reservoir hosts in the decline of the threatened northern corroboree frog (Pseudophryne pengilleyi) in an hibian community in southeastern Australia. In the laboratory, we characterized the response of a potential reservoir host, the (nondeclining) common eastern froglet (Crinia signifera), to Bd infection. In the field, we conducted frog abundance surveys and Bd s ling for both P. pengilleyi and C. signifera. We built multinomial logistic regression models to test whether Crinia signifera and environmental factors were associated with P. pengilleyi decline. C. signifera was a reservoir host for Bd. In the laboratory, many in iduals maintained intense infections (>1000 zoospore equivalents) over 12 weeks without mortality, and 79% of in iduals s led in the wild also carried infections. The presence of C. signifera at a site was strongly associated with increased Bd prevalence in sympatric P. pengilleyi. Consistent with disease lification by a reservoir host, P. pengilleyi declined at sites with high C. signifera abundance. Our results suggest that when reservoir hosts are present, population declines of susceptible species may continue long after the initial emergence of Bd, highlighting an urgent need to assess extinction risk in remnant populations of other declined hibian species.
Genetic neighbourhood and effective population size for two endangered frogs
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-1999
Automatic detection of lizards
Publisher: IEEE
Date: 11-2016
Detecting invertebrate responses to fire depends on sampling method and taxonomic resolution
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 14-01-2013
DOI: 10.1111/AEC.12024
Landscape context influences chytrid fungus distribution in an endangered E uropean amphibian
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 12-03-2015
DOI: 10.1111/ACV.12199
How predictable are reptile responses to wildfire?
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 07-2008
Energy partition and nitrogen utilization by male goats fed encapsulated calcium nitrate as a replacement for soybean meal
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2019
Impacts of feral horses in the Australian Alps and evidence-based solutions
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 2019
DOI: 10.1111/EMR.12357
Framework to improve the application of theory in ecology and conservation
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 02-2012
DOI: 10.1890/11-0916.1
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