Will trees get enough nitrogen to sustain productivity in elevated CO2? The project proposes to explore how tissue nitrogen declines in future elevated carbon dioxide (eCO2) by studying the availability of soil nitrogen to plants and use of nitrogen by Eucalyptus woodland trees. Plant canopy nitrogen concentrations decline in nearly every large-scale eCO2 study done on native soils. The project plans to explore how changes in ecosystem nitrogen balance occur, by investigating if leaf nitrogen de ....Will trees get enough nitrogen to sustain productivity in elevated CO2? The project proposes to explore how tissue nitrogen declines in future elevated carbon dioxide (eCO2) by studying the availability of soil nitrogen to plants and use of nitrogen by Eucalyptus woodland trees. Plant canopy nitrogen concentrations decline in nearly every large-scale eCO2 study done on native soils. The project plans to explore how changes in ecosystem nitrogen balance occur, by investigating if leaf nitrogen declines under eCO2 due to the balance of plant activity versus changes in soil nitrogen availability. The outcomes are central to knowing the extent to which extra nitrogen ‘feeds’ the eCO2 fertilisation response and sustains long-term increases in productivity. Expected outcomes may support the development of management options to sustain future forest productivity.Read moreRead less
To grow or to store: Do plants hedge their bets? This project aims to resolve a long-standing question about the function of perennial plants: how much of the carbon taken up by photosynthesis is used immediately for growth, and how much is kept in reserve as insurance against future stress? This question is important to our understanding of how plants respond to stresses such as severe drought, and yet lack of data and theoretical modelling currently hampers our ability to answer it. By applyin ....To grow or to store: Do plants hedge their bets? This project aims to resolve a long-standing question about the function of perennial plants: how much of the carbon taken up by photosynthesis is used immediately for growth, and how much is kept in reserve as insurance against future stress? This question is important to our understanding of how plants respond to stresses such as severe drought, and yet lack of data and theoretical modelling currently hampers our ability to answer it. By applying novel data analysis and modelling tools to recent experimental results, the project plans to test hypotheses for how plants allocate carbon between growth and storage in response to stress. Insights from the project may underpin better management of Australia’s vulnerable ecosystems.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE100100013
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$170,000.00
Summary
Eddy correlation lander array. The proposed Eddy Correlation Lander Array will be the first in world and, as such, will allow ground-breaking research to be undertaken resulting in advances in a variety of fields. As such, this equipment will significantly enhance many core research programs at Southern Cross University and Monash University and enhance our ability to deliver high quality research in the National Research Priority Area of An Environmentally Sustainable Australia, with priority g ....Eddy correlation lander array. The proposed Eddy Correlation Lander Array will be the first in world and, as such, will allow ground-breaking research to be undertaken resulting in advances in a variety of fields. As such, this equipment will significantly enhance many core research programs at Southern Cross University and Monash University and enhance our ability to deliver high quality research in the National Research Priority Area of An Environmentally Sustainable Australia, with priority goals in water resources, responding to climate change and variability, overcoming soil loss, salinity and acidity and sustainable use of Australia's biodiversity.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE120101290
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$375,000.00
Summary
Unravelling the transformation pathways and fate of dissolved organic carbon and nitrogen in shallow coastal sediments. This project will significantly advance our understanding of the cycling of dissolved organic carbon and dissolved organic nitrogen in shallow coastal sediments, a potentially major part of global carbon and nitrogen cycles. This will have direct implications for the management and protection of Australian coastal systems and the world's oceans.
Linking phytoplankton to fisheries using zooplankton size spectra. This project aims to develop innovative numerical methods to understand the dynamics, carbon export, and trophic structure of zooplankton. The trophic links between phytoplankton, zooplankton and fisheries are unknown. The size- frequency distribution of zooplankton (size spectrum) is an innovative method for estimating their growth, predation and production as food for fish. Analysis of a global synthesis of zooplankton size dis ....Linking phytoplankton to fisheries using zooplankton size spectra. This project aims to develop innovative numerical methods to understand the dynamics, carbon export, and trophic structure of zooplankton. The trophic links between phytoplankton, zooplankton and fisheries are unknown. The size- frequency distribution of zooplankton (size spectrum) is an innovative method for estimating their growth, predation and production as food for fish. Analysis of a global synthesis of zooplankton size distributions from tropical to polar environments are expected to reveal these vital rates of pelagic ecosystems. The zooplankton rates will reveal, for the first time, the link between phytoplankton and fisheries, and will significantly improve ecosystem models and global assessments of environmental change.Read moreRead less
Optimisation of catchment management: stable isotope studies of water storage and yield. Focusing on the Cotter catchment, this project will establish how the water content of soils and tree stems regulates the amount of water used by trees in sub-catchments, and thus how much reaches streams and dams. Small areas supply most of the water yield and this project will help identify where managers should focus efforts to increase yield.
Dissolution of CaCO3 in sediments in an acidifying ocean. Dissolution of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) in sediments in the context of ocean acidification is poorly understood. This project will use in situ advective benthic chamber incubations and experimental manipulations under future ocean acidification scenarios to determine the controls on the dissolution of CaCO3 in sediments. This project is significant because changes in the dissolution of CaCO3 in sediments in an acidifying ocean are at lea ....Dissolution of CaCO3 in sediments in an acidifying ocean. Dissolution of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) in sediments in the context of ocean acidification is poorly understood. This project will use in situ advective benthic chamber incubations and experimental manipulations under future ocean acidification scenarios to determine the controls on the dissolution of CaCO3 in sediments. This project is significant because changes in the dissolution of CaCO3 in sediments in an acidifying ocean are at least as important, and potentially more important, than calcification to the future accretion and survival of carbonate ecosystems. It is expected that outcomes of this project will significantly advance our understanding of the drivers of the dissolution of CaCO3 in sediments and the functioning of globally important carbonate ecosystems.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE170101349
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$372,000.00
Summary
Mechanisms underlying crop pollinator effectiveness in agro-ecosystems. This project aims to understand how pollinators affect fruit quantity and quality. Worldwide, insect pollinators contribute to biodiversity and ecosystem services in production systems, but also cause yield variability in pollinator-dependent crops. Accounting for the combined outcomes of the amount, quality and timing of the pollen transferred by each pollinator visit is a critical but unexplored component of crop pollinati ....Mechanisms underlying crop pollinator effectiveness in agro-ecosystems. This project aims to understand how pollinators affect fruit quantity and quality. Worldwide, insect pollinators contribute to biodiversity and ecosystem services in production systems, but also cause yield variability in pollinator-dependent crops. Accounting for the combined outcomes of the amount, quality and timing of the pollen transferred by each pollinator visit is a critical but unexplored component of crop pollination ecology. This project will quantitatively assess the effectiveness of pollinator communities to determine the importance of pollinator community composition to maximising crop production. This project is expected to protect food resources and economically benefit Australia.Read moreRead less
Marine urban development: how can ecology inform the design of multifunctional artificial structures? This project aims to experimentally manipulate the design of artificial structures to achieve multipurpose ecological objectives. Artificial structures such as buildings and roads have featured in terrestrial urban landscapes for many years, but have only more recently begun encroaching on aquatic environments. Most marine artificial structures lack the innovative design solutions required to mi ....Marine urban development: how can ecology inform the design of multifunctional artificial structures? This project aims to experimentally manipulate the design of artificial structures to achieve multipurpose ecological objectives. Artificial structures such as buildings and roads have featured in terrestrial urban landscapes for many years, but have only more recently begun encroaching on aquatic environments. Most marine artificial structures lack the innovative design solutions required to mitigate their ecological impacts and provide essential ecosystem services such as pollution abatement. This project will investigate the efficacy of these designs with both classical measures of diversity and structure and novel measures of ecosystem function. The project aims to provide essential information to inform the design of future marine urban developments.Read moreRead less
The trophic ecosystem of a purpose-built, offshore artificial reef: do coastal currents supply sufficient nutrients for the local production of fish? Offshore artificial reefs may provide enhanced recreational fishing for an urbanized coast. This project will investigate the oceanographic and ecological processes around the new, design-specific, reefs off Sydney to determine if they actually produce fish, rather than simply attract fish. The project will influence the design of future reefs.