Australian Laureate Fellowships - Grant ID: FL190100062
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$3,130,000.00
Summary
A new functional approach to coral reefs. This project aims to identify the key ecosystem functions that are needed to sustain coral reefs and determine their susceptibility to disturbance. Around the world coral reefs are changing fast, challenging traditional scientific, management, and governance approaches. This project plans to address this challenge by implementing a new, functional, approach exploiting a unique combination of evolutionary and ecological methodologies. Expected outcomes in ....A new functional approach to coral reefs. This project aims to identify the key ecosystem functions that are needed to sustain coral reefs and determine their susceptibility to disturbance. Around the world coral reefs are changing fast, challenging traditional scientific, management, and governance approaches. This project plans to address this challenge by implementing a new, functional, approach exploiting a unique combination of evolutionary and ecological methodologies. Expected outcomes include a global overview of ecosystem function and an in-depth understanding of how ecosystems change over time. This is likely to result in specific, and practical, management objectives by identifying crucial ecosystem functions that support reefs and the people who rely on them. Read moreRead less
Sumatra’s role in ancient human movements and evolution. This project aims to test whether humans moving through Southeast Asia used a savannah corridor, facilitating their migrations into Sumatra and Java, and examine the effect of rainforests on human movements and evolution. This will be accomplished by examining ecological proxies from vertebrate remains found in established and newly identified fossil sites in Sumatra. These results are expected to provide a new understanding of the environ ....Sumatra’s role in ancient human movements and evolution. This project aims to test whether humans moving through Southeast Asia used a savannah corridor, facilitating their migrations into Sumatra and Java, and examine the effect of rainforests on human movements and evolution. This will be accomplished by examining ecological proxies from vertebrate remains found in established and newly identified fossil sites in Sumatra. These results are expected to provide a new understanding of the environmental context of human evolution in Asia, and identify routes ancient people took as they moved south through Asia and into Australia.Read moreRead less
Fire and rain: Drivers of deep-time ecosystem assembly in Australia. This project aims to investigate the influence of bushfires and shifting rainfall patterns on the development of Australia’s dominant ecosystems. By combining a range of novel geochemical, isotopic and palaeontological techniques, this research seeks to reveal the causes and consequences of Australia’s transformation from a forested to mainly open landscape of grassland, shrubland and savannah. The expected outcome is detailed ....Fire and rain: Drivers of deep-time ecosystem assembly in Australia. This project aims to investigate the influence of bushfires and shifting rainfall patterns on the development of Australia’s dominant ecosystems. By combining a range of novel geochemical, isotopic and palaeontological techniques, this research seeks to reveal the causes and consequences of Australia’s transformation from a forested to mainly open landscape of grassland, shrubland and savannah. The expected outcome is detailed knowledge of how changes in fire and rain shaped the ecology and evolution of plants and animals. This knowledge is key to understanding how Australian ecosystems function and to protecting their cultural, economic and environmental values, especially as climate and fire regimes continue to change into the future.Read moreRead less
Naracoorte caves: a critical window on faunal extinctions and past climates. This project aims to establish an unprecedented record of biodiversity and environmental change at Australia’s richest Quaternary fossil site – Naracoorte Caves. The study will integrate all aspects of the preserved deposits, employing new approaches in geochronology, palaeontology and geochemistry to develop truly comprehensive palaeoecological and palaeoclimate histories. This project will establish a benchmark datase ....Naracoorte caves: a critical window on faunal extinctions and past climates. This project aims to establish an unprecedented record of biodiversity and environmental change at Australia’s richest Quaternary fossil site – Naracoorte Caves. The study will integrate all aspects of the preserved deposits, employing new approaches in geochronology, palaeontology and geochemistry to develop truly comprehensive palaeoecological and palaeoclimate histories. This project will establish a benchmark dataset on past ecological and environmental change, strengthening scientific innovation in key research priority areas. It will have significant implications for understanding megafauna extinctions and past biodiversity responses, and will inform future conservation and climate change adaptation strategies. The project will transform the scientific profile of Naracoorte Caves, ensuring socioeconomic benefits to regional communities through education, ecotourism and knowledge marketing.Read moreRead less
Macroecology of reptiles and frogs over latitudinal and temporal gradients. This project aims to address major macroecological concepts in reptile and frog communities through time, focusing on environmental and climatic gradients in species diversity and body-size variation. This project expects to generate a unique macroecological dataset by integrating data from Quaternary fossil sites spanning a 3000km latitudinal gradient with current ecological data. Expected outcomes include the first com ....Macroecology of reptiles and frogs over latitudinal and temporal gradients. This project aims to address major macroecological concepts in reptile and frog communities through time, focusing on environmental and climatic gradients in species diversity and body-size variation. This project expects to generate a unique macroecological dataset by integrating data from Quaternary fossil sites spanning a 3000km latitudinal gradient with current ecological data. Expected outcomes include the first comprehensive ecological assessment of Australian reptile and frog communities through Pleistocene climate oscillations, with predictions into the future. This research will benefit Australian society by providing evidence-based knowledge of faunal community composition through time in association with changing climates.Read moreRead less
Past climate and environmental impacts on Great Barrier Reef paleoecology. This project aims to investigate the interconnected processes that led to past reef growth and demise. The iconic Great Barrier Reef and reefs globally are under threat. Yet reefs appear to have undergone cycles of death and recovery, though the causes are poorly understood. This project will reconstruct past climate, rainfall, water quality, coral bleaching and reef ecology feedbacks across Great Barrier Reef death event ....Past climate and environmental impacts on Great Barrier Reef paleoecology. This project aims to investigate the interconnected processes that led to past reef growth and demise. The iconic Great Barrier Reef and reefs globally are under threat. Yet reefs appear to have undergone cycles of death and recovery, though the causes are poorly understood. This project will reconstruct past climate, rainfall, water quality, coral bleaching and reef ecology feedbacks across Great Barrier Reef death events to establish which environmental stressors and paleoclimate variations are most critical for reef health. The outcomes will better constrain long term coral reef dynamics and provide significant benefits to those who manage reefs globally, since the Great Barrier Reef covers the full range of reef environments.Read moreRead less