Resilience of eucalypts to future droughts. This project aims to examine how resilient Eucalyptus species are to future droughts by combining data synthesis, manipulative experiments and modelling. Climate change is expected to increase the frequency, magnitude and duration of future droughts, with major environmental and socio-economic consequences for Australia. Current predictive capacity is extremely limited: experiments are limited in scale and cannot capture important global change interac ....Resilience of eucalypts to future droughts. This project aims to examine how resilient Eucalyptus species are to future droughts by combining data synthesis, manipulative experiments and modelling. Climate change is expected to increase the frequency, magnitude and duration of future droughts, with major environmental and socio-economic consequences for Australia. Current predictive capacity is extremely limited: experiments are limited in scale and cannot capture important global change interactions, whilst models do not represent the functional characteristics and adaptions of eucalypts. This project will develop a strong evidence- and process-based understanding to quantify the functional behaviour of drought-adapted Eucalyptus species and leverage this insight to make future model projections.Read moreRead less
Living on the edge: how do Australian plants cope with extreme temperature? Of all the climatic factors determining species distributions, temperature is arguably the most important. It is extremes – rather than averages – that drive species evolution. So it is concerning that although extreme temperature events are increasing in frequency and intensity little is known about the breadth of thermal tolerance of plants from extreme environments. This information is crucial to understand species di ....Living on the edge: how do Australian plants cope with extreme temperature? Of all the climatic factors determining species distributions, temperature is arguably the most important. It is extremes – rather than averages – that drive species evolution. So it is concerning that although extreme temperature events are increasing in frequency and intensity little is known about the breadth of thermal tolerance of plants from extreme environments. This information is crucial to understand species distribution and survival under future climate regimes. This project will ascertain the thermal breadth of Australian species growing in situ and under controlled environments. The project will contribute to development of effective conservation, restoration and rehabilitation plans for Australian native plant communities. Read moreRead less
Forecasting live fuel moisture content, the on/off switch for forest fire. Dry forest fuels are a precursor of large bushfires. This research aims to develop, for the first time, a model to reliably forecast the moisture content of live fuels (e.g. the foliage and fine branches of shrubs and trees). This will be achieved by combining (i) satellite-derived estimates of live fuel moisture content, (ii) forecasts of soil moisture, and (iii) plant physiological responses to soil dryness. Forecasts o ....Forecasting live fuel moisture content, the on/off switch for forest fire. Dry forest fuels are a precursor of large bushfires. This research aims to develop, for the first time, a model to reliably forecast the moisture content of live fuels (e.g. the foliage and fine branches of shrubs and trees). This will be achieved by combining (i) satellite-derived estimates of live fuel moisture content, (ii) forecasts of soil moisture, and (iii) plant physiological responses to soil dryness. Forecasts of live fuel moisture content will deliver an early warning system of the risk of bushfires. These forecasts will also facilitate improved planning of prescribed burns: if fuels are too dry there is a risk of burns escaping, conversely, if fuels are too wet there is a risk that burns will fail to meet objectives.Read moreRead less
Ecosystem resilience of Shark Bay under changing ocean climate. This project aims to investigate the resilience of the Shark Bay World Heritage Site to projected climate change. This project will generate new knowledge for marine conservation through analyses of habitat loss on nutrient budgets and productivity in seagrass and microbialite ecosystems. Expected outcomes are an improved understanding of climate-driven shifts on ecosystem processes in Shark Bay, incorporating science-based evidence ....Ecosystem resilience of Shark Bay under changing ocean climate. This project aims to investigate the resilience of the Shark Bay World Heritage Site to projected climate change. This project will generate new knowledge for marine conservation through analyses of habitat loss on nutrient budgets and productivity in seagrass and microbialite ecosystems. Expected outcomes are an improved understanding of climate-driven shifts on ecosystem processes in Shark Bay, incorporating science-based evidence for better conservation and management. This will provide significant benefits by contributing to the future-proofing of Shark Bay’s World Heritage values to climate change, and more broadly by demonstrating the consequences of the continued tropicalisation of Australia’s coastline.Read moreRead less
Resolving the role of dryland flooding in the global carbon cycle. Aquatic sources of carbon dioxide and methane are globally significant, but unknown for flooded drylands. The aim of this project is to use an innovative combination of well-integrated methodologies to determine if flooded drylands release large amounts of carbon dioxide and methane. This project is significant because this release of carbon dioxide and methane has not previously been accounted for and may change the magnitude of ....Resolving the role of dryland flooding in the global carbon cycle. Aquatic sources of carbon dioxide and methane are globally significant, but unknown for flooded drylands. The aim of this project is to use an innovative combination of well-integrated methodologies to determine if flooded drylands release large amounts of carbon dioxide and methane. This project is significant because this release of carbon dioxide and methane has not previously been accounted for and may change the magnitude of the global terrestrial carbon dioxide sink and account of some of the planet’s missing sources of methane. The outcomes of this project will make a significant contribution to our understanding of the global carbon cycle and earth climate system, and inform future management of these systems.
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Understanding when biocontrol and enemy release affect plant populations. This project aims to determine when introduced species escape from their natural enemies, and when biocontrol efforts succeed. Enemy release and biocontrol are key to our understanding and management of invasions. However there has never been a broad quantitative assessment of the circumstances under which biocontrol and enemy release affect introduced populations. This project will use a combination of meta-analyses and i ....Understanding when biocontrol and enemy release affect plant populations. This project aims to determine when introduced species escape from their natural enemies, and when biocontrol efforts succeed. Enemy release and biocontrol are key to our understanding and management of invasions. However there has never been a broad quantitative assessment of the circumstances under which biocontrol and enemy release affect introduced populations. This project will use a combination of meta-analyses and international field studies to address this knowledge gap. Expected outcomes include a better understanding of the factors that facilitate biological invasions, and improved success of biocontrol agents.Read moreRead less
Silicon: a novel solution to reduce water use and pest damage in wheat. The project aims to improve Australian wheat production by increasing drought resilience and reducing reliance on pesticides. This is achieved by incorporating amorphous silicon (Si), an abundant national resource. Si uptake by wheat has been proven to alleviate stress from drought and pests, but mechanisms and agronomic feasibility remain to be fully assessed. The project will deliver a mechanistic understanding of how Si a ....Silicon: a novel solution to reduce water use and pest damage in wheat. The project aims to improve Australian wheat production by increasing drought resilience and reducing reliance on pesticides. This is achieved by incorporating amorphous silicon (Si), an abundant national resource. Si uptake by wheat has been proven to alleviate stress from drought and pests, but mechanisms and agronomic feasibility remain to be fully assessed. The project will deliver a mechanistic understanding of how Si alleviates stress in wheat, from gene to farm scale, providing cost-benefit analysis and a best–practice toolbox for implementation by farmers. Outcomes are anticipated to provide a cheaper and more environmentally sustainable solution to issues of water scarcity and yield losses to pests in Australia’s leading crop.Read moreRead less
What determines plant sensitivity to heat?: Individual to lifetime impacts. Temperature is a major determinant of the distribution of species and yet the capacity to predict the thermal sensitivity of plants is extremely limited. How vulnerability varies as a plant grows from seed to adult and produces more seed is a key question. Whether chronic warming exacerbates or ameliorates effects of extreme events, e.g. triggering the plant to enlist defensive strategies, is also an open question. This ....What determines plant sensitivity to heat?: Individual to lifetime impacts. Temperature is a major determinant of the distribution of species and yet the capacity to predict the thermal sensitivity of plants is extremely limited. How vulnerability varies as a plant grows from seed to adult and produces more seed is a key question. Whether chronic warming exacerbates or ameliorates effects of extreme events, e.g. triggering the plant to enlist defensive strategies, is also an open question. This project will advance fundamental understanding of how thermal tolerance varies across species and over the plant life cycle and how it scales demographically to lifetime vulnerability. The work will yield a significant advance in our capacity to predict impacts of extreme heat events on plant performance and distribution.
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Industrial Transformation Training Centres - Grant ID: IC230100027
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$5,000,000.00
Summary
ARC Training Centre in Plant Biosecurity. The ARC Training Centre in Plant Biosecurity aims to deliver a solution for Australia’s increasing biosecurity risk through generational change in its workforce coupled with breakthrough technologies. It will launch an innovative training program for future leaders who will build relationships with end users and engage meaningfully with communities for effective implementation strategies. Expected outcomes include a cohort of highly skilled graduates tha ....ARC Training Centre in Plant Biosecurity. The ARC Training Centre in Plant Biosecurity aims to deliver a solution for Australia’s increasing biosecurity risk through generational change in its workforce coupled with breakthrough technologies. It will launch an innovative training program for future leaders who will build relationships with end users and engage meaningfully with communities for effective implementation strategies. Expected outcomes include a cohort of highly skilled graduates that will innovate novel diagnostic technologies, enable data-driven decision platforms and address barriers to biosecurity adoption. This suite of graduates and technologies will transform the plant biosecurity sector to protect Australia’s $5.7 trillion natural and productive ecosystems.Read moreRead less