Sperm competition, sexual conflict, and gamete evolution in mice. The innovative experiments of this project will yield results that are at the forefront of research in evolutionary biology. This project will generate publications in high profile journals, and will foster collaborations between Australian and European researchers, creating a significant international impact and promoting excellence in Australian research. Since European settlement of Australia, sixty percent of the native rodent ....Sperm competition, sexual conflict, and gamete evolution in mice. The innovative experiments of this project will yield results that are at the forefront of research in evolutionary biology. This project will generate publications in high profile journals, and will foster collaborations between Australian and European researchers, creating a significant international impact and promoting excellence in Australian research. Since European settlement of Australia, sixty percent of the native rodent species have become extinct or are threatened with extinction. As there is a significant lack of research on the mating systems of Australian rodents, our investigations on a native mouse will generate information that will be extremely valuable to the national conservation efforts of threatened rodent species.Read moreRead less
Sociogenomics of honeybees. From genes to society. This project will show how complex social behaviour of honeybees like dance communication and thermoregulation is genetically controlled. The complete sequence of the honeybee genome will be published in 2003, and a gene chip based on it will be created shortly afterwards. These new technologies will make our project technically feasible. By backcrossing, workers with different genetic tendencies to do a task can be generated within an otherwi ....Sociogenomics of honeybees. From genes to society. This project will show how complex social behaviour of honeybees like dance communication and thermoregulation is genetically controlled. The complete sequence of the honeybee genome will be published in 2003, and a gene chip based on it will be created shortly afterwards. These new technologies will make our project technically feasible. By backcrossing, workers with different genetic tendencies to do a task can be generated within an otherwise uniform background. Age-matched workers that perform a behaviour like thermoregulation can be compared to sisters that do not, and the genes that are switched on in the two groups compared.Read moreRead less
Decision-making in social insects and nature-inspired optimisation algorithms. Insect societies are ideal for the study of complex systems. Contrary to other complex systems, insect colonies can be modified without destroying the system. Computer scientists have found a source of inspiration in the behaviour of social insects for solving optimisation problems. Here we will study the influence of information flow on decision-making in real insect societies using:
1) Experiments aimed at investig ....Decision-making in social insects and nature-inspired optimisation algorithms. Insect societies are ideal for the study of complex systems. Contrary to other complex systems, insect colonies can be modified without destroying the system. Computer scientists have found a source of inspiration in the behaviour of social insects for solving optimisation problems. Here we will study the influence of information flow on decision-making in real insect societies using:
1) Experiments aimed at investigating how storage and transfer of information affects individual decision-making within a honey bee colony (University of Sydney)
2) Design of a new class of 'bee' algorithms that incorporate direct information transfer and are aimed at solving dynamic multicriterion optimisation problems (University of Leipzig).
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Sex in the city: social harmony and conflict resolution in insect societies. Explaining the organization of cooperative societies is a significant challenge to the field of evolutionary biology. Insect societies play a pivotal role in achieving this aim, as colonies of many species persist with apparent harmony despite the presence of numerous queens competing for reproductive dominance. This study evaluates alternative hypotheses for the resolution of reproductive conflict and the maintenance a ....Sex in the city: social harmony and conflict resolution in insect societies. Explaining the organization of cooperative societies is a significant challenge to the field of evolutionary biology. Insect societies play a pivotal role in achieving this aim, as colonies of many species persist with apparent harmony despite the presence of numerous queens competing for reproductive dominance. This study evaluates alternative hypotheses for the resolution of reproductive conflict and the maintenance and evolution of cooperative societies, by examining colonies of the Australian multi-queened social wasp genus Ropalidia. Outcomes include robust tests of prominent hypotheses, explanations for cooperation's diversity and persistence, and the development of powerful molecular and behavioral techniques within Australia.
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The intensity of sexual selection with density and age and its importance in the evolution of animal populations. Australia is internationally highly regarded for the quality of its research into the basic biology of its fauna. This study will provide information on the breeding biology of an endemic marine species distributed across the Northern tropics of Australia. It addresses a pure research question of great theoretical interest. However, it also provides valuable training opportunities fo ....The intensity of sexual selection with density and age and its importance in the evolution of animal populations. Australia is internationally highly regarded for the quality of its research into the basic biology of its fauna. This study will provide information on the breeding biology of an endemic marine species distributed across the Northern tropics of Australia. It addresses a pure research question of great theoretical interest. However, it also provides valuable training opportunities for postgraduate students in the practicalities of conducting tropical field biology and the execution of field experiments. These are essential skills that can readily be transferred to applied biological problems. Maintaining a pool of skilled field biologists is essential for the on-going success of programmes in conservation and ecosystem management. Read moreRead less
The role of short tandem repeat DNA variation in the evolution of human psychological diversity. The proposed work addresses fundamental questions about human nature. It ties together the evolutionary processes that have shaped us as a species with the way our genes influence: our personalities, the way we think and how we behave. It introduces a novel approach to addressing questions about the role of genetics in human variation that will contribute substantially to the way we understand, perce ....The role of short tandem repeat DNA variation in the evolution of human psychological diversity. The proposed work addresses fundamental questions about human nature. It ties together the evolutionary processes that have shaped us as a species with the way our genes influence: our personalities, the way we think and how we behave. It introduces a novel approach to addressing questions about the role of genetics in human variation that will contribute substantially to the way we understand, perceive and manage important aspects of human diversity.Read moreRead less
Pheromone evolution and ecology in insects on intra- and inter-specific scales. The study of pheromones is important because so many insect pests use them as part of their reproductive life cycle, increasing their potential to cause damage to crops and other natural products. My research will improve our understanding of the evolution of pheromones and communication by smell, a subject that has been largely neglected by evolutionary biologists. More specifically, by identifying the ecological fa ....Pheromone evolution and ecology in insects on intra- and inter-specific scales. The study of pheromones is important because so many insect pests use them as part of their reproductive life cycle, increasing their potential to cause damage to crops and other natural products. My research will improve our understanding of the evolution of pheromones and communication by smell, a subject that has been largely neglected by evolutionary biologists. More specifically, by identifying the ecological factors that influence pheromone evolution, the research will help to assess the long-term consequences of the control measures currently used against such pests and, in particular, will have direct applications to the prevention of damage to Australian pine plantations by the invasive five-spined bark beetle, Ips grandicollis. Read moreRead less
BEYOND ABUNDANCE: HOW TOP PREDATORS AFFECT MESOPREDATOR BEHAVIOUR AND LIFE HISTORY. Top predators strongly influence biodiversity. Areas with high biodiversity attract tourism income and provide valuable ecosystem services. In Australia, high biodiversity, and the opportunity to view top predators, increase the experience quality of tourists, and increase the probability that they will visit an area, but Australia has many highly fragmented ecosystems, which lose top predators. Disappearance of ....BEYOND ABUNDANCE: HOW TOP PREDATORS AFFECT MESOPREDATOR BEHAVIOUR AND LIFE HISTORY. Top predators strongly influence biodiversity. Areas with high biodiversity attract tourism income and provide valuable ecosystem services. In Australia, high biodiversity, and the opportunity to view top predators, increase the experience quality of tourists, and increase the probability that they will visit an area, but Australia has many highly fragmented ecosystems, which lose top predators. Disappearance of top predators can lead to expanding populations of mid-level predators, and concomitant losses of biodiversity. In Australia, where lizards are major top- and mid-level predators in terrestrial systems, our study will directly address the consequences of predator disappearance, and provide management strategies to deal with it.Read moreRead less
Catch me if you can: predator recognition and anti-predator behaviour in marine fishes. Increased understanding of the interactions between prey and their predators that have shaped the fish communities that inhabit today's coral reefs will aid in predicting how they will respond to future perturbations such as increased fishing pressure, range shifts caused by climate change, or species introductions. This will provide national economic benefits by increasing our ability to manage coral reefs, ....Catch me if you can: predator recognition and anti-predator behaviour in marine fishes. Increased understanding of the interactions between prey and their predators that have shaped the fish communities that inhabit today's coral reefs will aid in predicting how they will respond to future perturbations such as increased fishing pressure, range shifts caused by climate change, or species introductions. This will provide national economic benefits by increasing our ability to manage coral reefs, such as the Great Barrier Reef, a World Heritage Site of great economic importance for fisheries and ecotourism. Read moreRead less
Beyond Abundance: An experimental study of the effects of predators on prey behaviour and reproduction. Understanding the influence of top predators on community composition and population dynamics at lower trophic levels is a central problem in ecology, with important implications for ecological theory and conservation biology. Our study will be among the first to examine effects of presence and absence of top-level predators on the behaviour, reproduction, and microhabitat use of mid-level p ....Beyond Abundance: An experimental study of the effects of predators on prey behaviour and reproduction. Understanding the influence of top predators on community composition and population dynamics at lower trophic levels is a central problem in ecology, with important implications for ecological theory and conservation biology. Our study will be among the first to examine effects of presence and absence of top-level predators on the behaviour, reproduction, and microhabitat use of mid-level predators. Understanding how the behaviour and ecology of lower-level species change in response to changes in abundance of top-level predators will increase the ability of managers to mitigate the impacts of changes in predator abundance on managed ecosystems.Read moreRead less