Time frame for the evolution of Australia's extraordinary mammals. This Project will refine a national biostratigraphic framework integrating growing understanding about the history of Australia's unique mammals, climate change and geological events. Increasing precision in correlating Australia's phylogenetic, palaeoecological and palaeoclimatological events will clarify how these act synergistically to change environments and biodiversity. Increased precision in the biostratigraphic framework ....Time frame for the evolution of Australia's extraordinary mammals. This Project will refine a national biostratigraphic framework integrating growing understanding about the history of Australia's unique mammals, climate change and geological events. Increasing precision in correlating Australia's phylogenetic, palaeoecological and palaeoclimatological events will clarify how these act synergistically to change environments and biodiversity. Increased precision in the biostratigraphic framework will also serve evolutionary genetics which needs age data to calculate molecular rates of divergence, economic geologists needing to know the age of Cainozoic sediments, biologists trying to understand the origins and nature of biodiversity and conservationists using divergence dates and relative branch lengths to help determine conservation priorities. Read moreRead less
Unlocking archives of faunal dispersal and extinction: the key to reconstructing palaeoenvironmental change in Southeast Asia. The influence of environmental change on faunal populations is a pressing issue for Australian communities in environmentally sensitive areas. This will be addressed by documenting how fauna (and humans) in Southeast Asia, our nearest neighbours, responded to environmental challenges. Revealing when humans dispersed through the region and how they adapted will contribute ....Unlocking archives of faunal dispersal and extinction: the key to reconstructing palaeoenvironmental change in Southeast Asia. The influence of environmental change on faunal populations is a pressing issue for Australian communities in environmentally sensitive areas. This will be addressed by documenting how fauna (and humans) in Southeast Asia, our nearest neighbours, responded to environmental challenges. Revealing when humans dispersed through the region and how they adapted will contribute to our understanding of the cultural heritage of Australia's indigenous settlers. This project will develop established Indonesian collaborations, encourage new collaborations with Chinese, Thai, English and Dutch researchers to promote Australian research on a world stage, and pioneer new dating methodologies to enhance Australia's place at the forefront of geochronology.Read moreRead less