Understanding leaf water isotope composition. This project aims to quantify variation in leaf water isotopes and develop mechanistic models for paleoclimatologists and plant scientists to constrain global carbon cycles. Leaf water stable isotopes influence the isotope compositions of atmospheric oxygen, carbon dioxide and water vapour, and impart an evaporative signal on the isotope composition of plant organic material. These isotope signals have been used to constrain global carbon and water c ....Understanding leaf water isotope composition. This project aims to quantify variation in leaf water isotopes and develop mechanistic models for paleoclimatologists and plant scientists to constrain global carbon cycles. Leaf water stable isotopes influence the isotope compositions of atmospheric oxygen, carbon dioxide and water vapour, and impart an evaporative signal on the isotope composition of plant organic material. These isotope signals have been used to constrain global carbon and water cycles and reconstruct past climates. This project aims to quantify variation in leaf water isotopes and develop mechanistic models for use by paleoclimatologists, plant scientists and to constrain global carbon cycles and develop accurate models of leaf water isotopes to reduce uncertainty in climate models.Read moreRead less
Testing climatic, physiological and hydrological assumptions underpinning water yield from montane forests. Water collected in dams and reservoirs remains the mainstay water resource for Australian cities, towns and industry. Overwhelmingly, that water is collected from forested catchments where the water balance of forest stands is dominated by the amount of water used by trees. Characterising tree water use, its response to changing climatic and nocturnal conditions, and other aspects of sta ....Testing climatic, physiological and hydrological assumptions underpinning water yield from montane forests. Water collected in dams and reservoirs remains the mainstay water resource for Australian cities, towns and industry. Overwhelmingly, that water is collected from forested catchments where the water balance of forest stands is dominated by the amount of water used by trees. Characterising tree water use, its response to changing climatic and nocturnal conditions, and other aspects of stand hydrology, are crucial to our ability to predict and model future water yields. Working in the Cotter catchment near Canberra and the upper Kiewa catchment in north-east Victoria, we aim to help the agencies responsible for water and catchment management to improve the security of their forecasts of water yield and their on-ground management. Read moreRead less
Leaf respiration under drought: a global perspective. Predicting future net carbon exchange is necessary for better management of vegetation resources by Australia. Incorporating the responses of plant respiration to drought and temperature is crucial for predicting future rates of net carbon exchange. Using laboratory and field studies, this research will develop an understanding of how water availability and temperature impact on plant respiration of a broad range of economically important and ....Leaf respiration under drought: a global perspective. Predicting future net carbon exchange is necessary for better management of vegetation resources by Australia. Incorporating the responses of plant respiration to drought and temperature is crucial for predicting future rates of net carbon exchange. Using laboratory and field studies, this research will develop an understanding of how water availability and temperature impact on plant respiration of a broad range of economically important and ecologically relevant plant species. Equations will be formulated that will improve how modellers calculate drought-dependent variations in plant respiration (and thus plant productivity), thereby improving predictions for a future, warmer world.Read moreRead less
Oxygen isotope discrimination during C4 photosynthesis. Plants with the C4 photosynthetic pathway, like sugarcane and pasture grasses, are vital to Australian agriculture and natural ecosystems. This project will use novel laser spectroscopy to measure oxygen isotope discrimination during photosynthesis and quantify the influence of C4 plants on isotopic signatures of atmospheric CO2.
Avoiding coral bleaching: investigation into the repair of damaged photosynthetic machinery in symbiotic algae (symbiodinium) within corals. Photosynthesis in symbiotic algae within corals is essential for a healthy alga-coral symbiotic relationship. This project will provide new insights into how symbiotic algae maintain higher photosynthetic performance in corals through elucidating the mechanism associated with the repair of photodamaged photosynthetic machinery.
ARC Australia-New Zealand Research Network for Vegetation Function. Plant species vary widely in quantitative functional traits, and in their relations to climate, soils and geography. Global generalizations are emerging. Vegetation Function network will reach from plant function into genomics and crop breeding, into palaeoecology and vegetation history, into landscape management for carbon, water and salinity outcomes, into forecasting future ecosystems under global change, and into phylogeny, ....ARC Australia-New Zealand Research Network for Vegetation Function. Plant species vary widely in quantitative functional traits, and in their relations to climate, soils and geography. Global generalizations are emerging. Vegetation Function network will reach from plant function into genomics and crop breeding, into palaeoecology and vegetation history, into landscape management for carbon, water and salinity outcomes, into forecasting future ecosystems under global change, and into phylogeny, ecoinformatics and evolutionary theory. Across this span, working groups will target nine identified opportunities for breakthrough research. Each research target needs input from two or more disciplines. Together, the nine targets link across disciplines, as a network that spans from genomic to planetary scales.Read moreRead less