Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE150101853
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$356,000.00
Summary
One genome but two sexes: Conflict and the evolution of sexual dimorphism. How can males and females display striking sex differences, when they primarily share the same set of genes? By experimentally evolving the degree of sexual dimorphism in Drosophila melanogaster, this project endeavours to address key issues at the heart of evolutionary biology. This project aims to deliver a novel, data-rich resource with which to explore the mechanisms and consequences of sexual dimorphism evolution, to ....One genome but two sexes: Conflict and the evolution of sexual dimorphism. How can males and females display striking sex differences, when they primarily share the same set of genes? By experimentally evolving the degree of sexual dimorphism in Drosophila melanogaster, this project endeavours to address key issues at the heart of evolutionary biology. This project aims to deliver a novel, data-rich resource with which to explore the mechanisms and consequences of sexual dimorphism evolution, to expand current understanding of this fundamental evolutionary paradox.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE140101075
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$374,837.00
Summary
Ecophysiology and evolution of sleep and adaptive sleeplessness. The function of sleep is enigmatic, even though the treatment of costly sleep disorders requires an understanding of the function that sleep performs. This project approaches this enigma with the comprehensive study of sleep in diverse animals to examine ecological-induced plasticity and evolution of sleep. Using innovative technologies in real-world situations, this project will spearhead the study of sleep ecophysiology to identi ....Ecophysiology and evolution of sleep and adaptive sleeplessness. The function of sleep is enigmatic, even though the treatment of costly sleep disorders requires an understanding of the function that sleep performs. This project approaches this enigma with the comprehensive study of sleep in diverse animals to examine ecological-induced plasticity and evolution of sleep. Using innovative technologies in real-world situations, this project will spearhead the study of sleep ecophysiology to identify animals that are resilient to the negative effects of sleep loss, and will determine whether the evolution of new types of animal was associated with the co-evolution of new types of sleep. The outcomes will have wide-ranging implications for our view of sleep function, prescriptions for an optimal amount of sleep and human health and wellbeing.Read moreRead less
Constrained or strategic? Causes and consequences of variation in self-maintenance in wild birds. To live long and healthy lives, animals must defend themselves from diseases and repair damage due to wear and tear. This project will address what prevents animals from achieving optimal defences, and what the consequences are for ageing and survival.
Mechanisms of colour production and the evolution of animal signals. This project aims to reveal how diverse colours are produced in reptiles and the information these colours convey about individual health, condition and performance. The project evaluates how stress affects both pigment deposition and the nano-structure of cells and tissues, which together produce colour. By comparing similar colours generated by two entirely different classes of pigment (carotenoids and pteridines), this proje ....Mechanisms of colour production and the evolution of animal signals. This project aims to reveal how diverse colours are produced in reptiles and the information these colours convey about individual health, condition and performance. The project evaluates how stress affects both pigment deposition and the nano-structure of cells and tissues, which together produce colour. By comparing similar colours generated by two entirely different classes of pigment (carotenoids and pteridines), this project will provide new insights into the evolution of animal coloration, and will significantly enhance our understanding of pteridines, one of the most prevalent but least understood classes of pigment in vertebrates.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE240101022
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$457,000.00
Summary
Linking movement and animal vision to uncover functions of dynamic colours. This project aims to address a fundamental biological question: what drives the extraordinary diversity of colours in nature? Using cutting-edge, interdisciplinary techniques, this project expects to link visual properties, movement and animal vision to discover functions of animal colouration, generating significant new insights for the fields of visual ecology, animal behaviour and camouflage. The outcomes of this proj ....Linking movement and animal vision to uncover functions of dynamic colours. This project aims to address a fundamental biological question: what drives the extraordinary diversity of colours in nature? Using cutting-edge, interdisciplinary techniques, this project expects to link visual properties, movement and animal vision to discover functions of animal colouration, generating significant new insights for the fields of visual ecology, animal behaviour and camouflage. The outcomes of this project include enhanced national and international collaboration and new tools for animal behaviour, perception and camouflage research. This work will benefit our understanding of vision, colour and the relationship between the two, with significant scope for bio-inspired solutions to sensor and image processing problems.Read moreRead less
Forensic entomology and time of death estimation in Victoria. Assessing time of death is a notoriously difficult, yet critical component of homicide investigations. Forensic entomology can provide reliable death time estimates using detailed knowledge of the ecology and life-history characteristics of local carrion insect species. However, these data are largely unavailable for Victoria and elsewhere on the eastern Australian seaboard. This project will measure growth rates of carrion insect ....Forensic entomology and time of death estimation in Victoria. Assessing time of death is a notoriously difficult, yet critical component of homicide investigations. Forensic entomology can provide reliable death time estimates using detailed knowledge of the ecology and life-history characteristics of local carrion insect species. However, these data are largely unavailable for Victoria and elsewhere on the eastern Australian seaboard. This project will measure growth rates of carrion insect larvae, investigate carrion insect ecology in different habitats, and describe the larval morphology of key species. We will also investigate the efficacy of a new method for estimating time of death using corpse chemistry.Read moreRead less
Megafauna and mega-extinction: assessing palaeocommunity change using dental complexity and shape analyses. This research will address an important issue of national interest - the causes of the extinction of the Australian megafauna. By furthering research on the causes of this historic event, valuable insights will be gained into possible causes of current extinction events and the future impact of climate change. It will bring to Australia new technologies and methods developed overseas by an ....Megafauna and mega-extinction: assessing palaeocommunity change using dental complexity and shape analyses. This research will address an important issue of national interest - the causes of the extinction of the Australian megafauna. By furthering research on the causes of this historic event, valuable insights will be gained into possible causes of current extinction events and the future impact of climate change. It will bring to Australia new technologies and methods developed overseas by an Australian researcher, and put Australia at the forefront of several areas of research including 3D scanning and analysis. This project will form part of an international collaboration called the MorphoBrowser, an exciting advance in the study of biological diversity. This will help maintain Australia as a pre-eminent country for palaeontology research.Read moreRead less
Sexual signalling and parental care: A life-history perspective. I will use a fish, the Australian desert goby, to gain pivotal insights into male reproductive investment. Under-appreciated as potential study subjects, desert gobies are ideal because males must make important reproductive decisions regarding how much effort to spend on mate attraction and parental care but, importantly, they must do so within the constraints imposed by desert-living. The likely impact of my work in the field of ....Sexual signalling and parental care: A life-history perspective. I will use a fish, the Australian desert goby, to gain pivotal insights into male reproductive investment. Under-appreciated as potential study subjects, desert gobies are ideal because males must make important reproductive decisions regarding how much effort to spend on mate attraction and parental care but, importantly, they must do so within the constraints imposed by desert-living. The likely impact of my work in the field of behavioural ecology will improve Australia's research capacity and profile. By using an Australian study species, my research will also raise awareness and understanding of extraordinary fishes living in habitats vulnerable to human impact. Read moreRead less
Individual behaviour and collective order: the traffic dynamics of ants. We are investigating the properties of traffic flow in ant colonies. Ants seem to meet their transportation needs without traffic congestion or complex centralised control. By discovering how ants accomplish this, we increase our understanding of social behaviour in the natural world, and also provide the basic research on which applied solutions to human traffic problems can be based.
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE120102323
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$375,000.00
Summary
How the visual environment affects the diversity of avian colours and why this matters. Evolutionary theory predicts that (a) animal colours are optimised to perform best in their native environment and hence that (b) environmental degradation can disrupt the function of animal colours in communication or camouflage. This project will test these predictions for Australian birds and use the outcome to inform environmental restoration programs.