Towards 2050 - managing recovery of Australia's coral reefs. The coral reefs of Australia contribute over $6 bn each year to the economy. However, the reefs of Australia, in addition to those worldwide, are threatened by coral bleaching driven by anthropogenic climate change. If we are to preserve the economic, social and ecosystem value of these environments, it is essential that we are able to better manage the recovery of reefs from bleaching events. This project will utilise a variety of mul ....Towards 2050 - managing recovery of Australia's coral reefs. The coral reefs of Australia contribute over $6 bn each year to the economy. However, the reefs of Australia, in addition to those worldwide, are threatened by coral bleaching driven by anthropogenic climate change. If we are to preserve the economic, social and ecosystem value of these environments, it is essential that we are able to better manage the recovery of reefs from bleaching events. This project will utilise a variety of multi-disciplinary approaches, ranging from future climate models, historical satellite data to in-field experimentation to fill fundamental knowledge gaps in our understanding of coral bleaching recovery and delivery a variety of management and stakeholder relevant outputs.Read moreRead less
Evolution of sensory systems in the dark biosphere. This project utilises a unique Australian model system based on multiple, independently-evolved subterranean water beetles to explore the adaptive and regressive changes in the genome that occur when surface species colonise subterranean habitats. We aim to characterise and investigate the evolution of chemosensory and circadian rhythm genes, which play critical roles in the fitness of animals, including the ability to find food and mates in a ....Evolution of sensory systems in the dark biosphere. This project utilises a unique Australian model system based on multiple, independently-evolved subterranean water beetles to explore the adaptive and regressive changes in the genome that occur when surface species colonise subterranean habitats. We aim to characterise and investigate the evolution of chemosensory and circadian rhythm genes, which play critical roles in the fitness of animals, including the ability to find food and mates in a dark, thermally stable environment. Knowledge of chemosensory and circadian genetic systems and how they dynamically evolve is fundamental to a variety of fields, including the process of speciation and biological adaptation (for example, to permanent darkness, pollutants and insecticides).Read moreRead less
Some like it hot: the genetics of rapid adaptation to climate change. This project investigates the genetics of rapid evolutionary adaptation by utilising genomes sampled over unparalleled temporal and spatial scales in a highly invasive and agriculturally significant weed. This project expects to generate new knowledge about the genetic mechanisms that facilitate adaptation to climate change by developing new theory and genomic predictions, and then testing them under realistic field conditions ....Some like it hot: the genetics of rapid adaptation to climate change. This project investigates the genetics of rapid evolutionary adaptation by utilising genomes sampled over unparalleled temporal and spatial scales in a highly invasive and agriculturally significant weed. This project expects to generate new knowledge about the genetic mechanisms that facilitate adaptation to climate change by developing new theory and genomic predictions, and then testing them under realistic field conditions. Expected outcomes include a deeper understanding of the genetic basis of adaptation, and a powerful framework to predict the evolutionary consequences of climate change. This should provide significant benefits, including improved capacity to anticipate the effects of climate change on noxious and threatened species.Read moreRead less
Contact Networks, Immunity, and Evolution in Competing Cancer Epidemics. The project aims to evaluate evolutionary interactions between two transmissible cancer epidemics affecting Tasmanian devils and quantify their feedback on infection risk and epidemic behaviour. Using contact tracing and a phylogenetic framework we aim to quantify how tumour lineages evolve with each generation of infection and their effects on susceptibility to infection and disease progression. We expect to reveal the hos ....Contact Networks, Immunity, and Evolution in Competing Cancer Epidemics. The project aims to evaluate evolutionary interactions between two transmissible cancer epidemics affecting Tasmanian devils and quantify their feedback on infection risk and epidemic behaviour. Using contact tracing and a phylogenetic framework we aim to quantify how tumour lineages evolve with each generation of infection and their effects on susceptibility to infection and disease progression. We expect to reveal the host immuno-genetic basis underpinning cancer suppression and the adaptive capacity of populations in response to infectious diseases. This should significantly improve our ability to understand and manage this and other epidemic outbreaks in wildlife, as well as advancing our knowledge in cancer ecology and evolution.Read moreRead less
Fitness and evolutionary consequences of developmental plasticity. This project aims to develop a framework for accurately predicting species responses to global change. Phenotypic plasticity will act as a rapid-response mechanism, enabling organisms to survive climatic shifts in the first instance. Understanding how and when plasticity underpins species’ persistence under climate change is lacking. This project aims to integrate developmental responses to environmental change with evolutionary ....Fitness and evolutionary consequences of developmental plasticity. This project aims to develop a framework for accurately predicting species responses to global change. Phenotypic plasticity will act as a rapid-response mechanism, enabling organisms to survive climatic shifts in the first instance. Understanding how and when plasticity underpins species’ persistence under climate change is lacking. This project aims to integrate developmental responses to environmental change with evolutionary adaptation and population persistence in a spatially explicit context. The intended outcome is a powerful and general tool for predicting the impact of environmental change on the distribution and abundance of organisms. Benefits include improved conservation outcomes and better control of pest/disease vectors.Read moreRead less
Hybridisation leading to lost sex: genomic and experimental insights. The project intends to apply advanced genomics to two classic Australian systems and quantitative genetics to one to address long-standing questions about why asexual reproduction is rare. It aims to test for rapid changes in genomes accompanying hybrid-origins of asexuals and whether this new diversity enables their ongoing evolution. The significance is that support for this hypothesis would challenge current theory for why ....Hybridisation leading to lost sex: genomic and experimental insights. The project intends to apply advanced genomics to two classic Australian systems and quantitative genetics to one to address long-standing questions about why asexual reproduction is rare. It aims to test for rapid changes in genomes accompanying hybrid-origins of asexuals and whether this new diversity enables their ongoing evolution. The significance is that support for this hypothesis would challenge current theory for why sex is so common. The expected outcome is to understand how variation is generated in natural populations with different ways of reproducing. Benefits would include significant contributions to global science, evolutionary training and potential applications in using hybridisation to manage threatened species or pests.Read moreRead less
Revealing the impacts of super-charged photosynthesis on leaf respiration. This project aims to use state-of-the-art technologies to develop a novel framework that links a super-charged version of photosynthesis (known as C4 photosynthesis) to changes in nocturnal leaf respiration. A quarter of global land photosynthesis occurs in C4 plants that include several important cereal crops. Although advances have been made in modelling C4 photosynthesis, these advances are unable to model variations i ....Revealing the impacts of super-charged photosynthesis on leaf respiration. This project aims to use state-of-the-art technologies to develop a novel framework that links a super-charged version of photosynthesis (known as C4 photosynthesis) to changes in nocturnal leaf respiration. A quarter of global land photosynthesis occurs in C4 plants that include several important cereal crops. Although advances have been made in modelling C4 photosynthesis, these advances are unable to model variations in nocturnal respiration. Expected outcomes include equations that predict respiration in C4 plants growing in current/future climates. Benefits to include knowledge needed to engineer faster-growing crops and providing climate modelers the ability to more accurately predict carbon exchange in C4-dominated ecosystems. Read moreRead less
Combining biomechanics and movement ecology of kangaroos and relatives. Kangaroos and their relatives are unique in their body form, hopping gait and by the fact that increased speed does not come at an increased energetic cost. This project aims to build 3D musculoskeletal models to understand how muscles and tendons interact, enabling greater distances to be travelled using less energy. Further, it will use animal tracking devices and machine-learning tools to quantify movements in the wild. T ....Combining biomechanics and movement ecology of kangaroos and relatives. Kangaroos and their relatives are unique in their body form, hopping gait and by the fact that increased speed does not come at an increased energetic cost. This project aims to build 3D musculoskeletal models to understand how muscles and tendons interact, enabling greater distances to be travelled using less energy. Further, it will use animal tracking devices and machine-learning tools to quantify movements in the wild. This framework will provide novel insights into how energetics, morphology, and habitat have shaped the evolution of this unique group. This may open doors to a range of future ecological, physiological, and conservation studies and provide biological inspiration for energetically efficient robotic and assistive devices.Read moreRead less
Nature’s advanced optical materials and their role in thermal management. This project aims to discover the nano-structural properties of beetles than enable effective management of solar and thermal radiation in different environments. A further aim is to reveal how these composite biological materials combine thermal control with desirable mechanical properties, such as strength and flexibility. Passive control of radiative energy is critical for both animal survival and for the design of many ....Nature’s advanced optical materials and their role in thermal management. This project aims to discover the nano-structural properties of beetles than enable effective management of solar and thermal radiation in different environments. A further aim is to reveal how these composite biological materials combine thermal control with desirable mechanical properties, such as strength and flexibility. Passive control of radiative energy is critical for both animal survival and for the design of many manufactured materials, particularly in a warming world. This interdisciplinary project will provide new knowledge of the different ways that biological materials mediate radiative energy exchange with the environment. This knowledge is essential for the design of bioinspired, energy-efficient, multi-functional materials.Read moreRead less