Functional links between estuaries and their catchments: How does land use change affect estuarine ecological and bio-geochemical function? Estuaries are iconic recreational areas of high ecological and socio-economic value. Estuarine health is strongly linked to the catchments that feed them, yet we have no detailed understanding of these links. This project will use a number of state of the art approaches to better understand how land use affects estuarine health.
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE200100083
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$310,000.00
Summary
A 4D habitat-modelling facility to support marine ecological research. The loss and modification of natural habitats is a major threat to biodiversity that requires evidence-based management supported by excellent science. To this end, this project will create a facility for 4D habitat modelling (i.e. assessing changes in 3D habitat structure over time) that will underpin research innovation in marine systems. The new aerial and subtidal image acquisition technology will also be used to accurate ....A 4D habitat-modelling facility to support marine ecological research. The loss and modification of natural habitats is a major threat to biodiversity that requires evidence-based management supported by excellent science. To this end, this project will create a facility for 4D habitat modelling (i.e. assessing changes in 3D habitat structure over time) that will underpin research innovation in marine systems. The new aerial and subtidal image acquisition technology will also be used to accurately measure changes in marine plants and algae over time, improve habitats provided by coastal protection infrastructure and support ecological field research. The new equipment will allow scaling up of field experiments and monitoring to enhance their impact and capacity to support effective management.Read moreRead less
New tools to detect ecological effects of contaminants in estuaries. Identifying risks to estuarine environments from pollutants is difficult for environmental managers, who must choose between laboratory toxicity testing that is precise, but hard to generalise to field situations, and more realistic field-based monitoring, which is expensive, with a high signal to noise ratio. New molecular techniques may provide more options. Metabolomics can provide insights into the health of animals, and ec ....New tools to detect ecological effects of contaminants in estuaries. Identifying risks to estuarine environments from pollutants is difficult for environmental managers, who must choose between laboratory toxicity testing that is precise, but hard to generalise to field situations, and more realistic field-based monitoring, which is expensive, with a high signal to noise ratio. New molecular techniques may provide more options. Metabolomics can provide insights into the health of animals, and ecogenomics offers a way to rapidly assess the composition of an ecological community. These techniques offer great promise, but they must be cross-validated against existing methods to derive the best ’toolbox’. Working with Melbourne Water and CSIRO the investigators aim to do this using demonstration estuaries in Victoria.Read moreRead less
Genetic solution or dilution: can selective breeding future-proof oysters? This project aims to test whether the flow of beneficial genes from farmed oysters into wild oysters can make natural oyster beds and the ecological communities that they support more resilient to environmental change. Wild oysters are critical to the function of coastal ecosystems. However, wild oyster populations are threatened by environmental change in Australia and around the world. Selectively bred oysters bearing s ....Genetic solution or dilution: can selective breeding future-proof oysters? This project aims to test whether the flow of beneficial genes from farmed oysters into wild oysters can make natural oyster beds and the ecological communities that they support more resilient to environmental change. Wild oysters are critical to the function of coastal ecosystems. However, wild oyster populations are threatened by environmental change in Australia and around the world. Selectively bred oysters bearing stress resistance genotypes are now commercially farmed in many estuaries on Australia's east coast and may be used to bolster wild oyster populations. This project endeavours to develop novel genetic strategies to future-proof oysters. Thus, the outcome of this project has potential to benefit entire ecosystems that depend upon oysters.Read moreRead less
Creating coolspots: eco-engineering heat-resistant intertidal communities. This project aims to identify structural characteristics of marine intertidal habitat patches, formed by seaweeds and shellfish, that protect associated species from thermal extremes. This project will generate new knowledge about how thermally sensitive intertidal species can persist in stressful environments. Expected outcomes of this project
include new approaches for building heat-tolerant ecological communities on co ....Creating coolspots: eco-engineering heat-resistant intertidal communities. This project aims to identify structural characteristics of marine intertidal habitat patches, formed by seaweeds and shellfish, that protect associated species from thermal extremes. This project will generate new knowledge about how thermally sensitive intertidal species can persist in stressful environments. Expected outcomes of this project
include new approaches for building heat-tolerant ecological communities on coastal infrastructure, and improved tools for predicting the response of intertidal seaweeds and animals to environmental change. The results of this project will benefit coastal management by identifying conservation and rehabilitation strategies that maximise the
resilience of coastal ecosystems to environmental change.Read moreRead less
Testing the waters: impacts of contaminants on ecosystem structure and function in urban waterways. To ensure that people can swim, catch fish and enjoy the beauty of urban waterways we need to be able to predict the effects of more than one stressor at a time. This project will determine how nutrients and metals affect our waterways. Findings will help prioritise management actions that protect biodiversity and human uses of these systems.
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE150100461
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$360,000.00
Summary
Early Detection of Seagrass Habitat Loss Caused by Eutrophication. Eutrophication (nutrient over-enrichment) caused by a host of anthropogenic activities is recognised as the most widespread cause of seagrass loss. In order to effectively control seagrass loss, there is an urgent need to determine the link between eutrophication and seagrass loss. This project aims to undertake an innovative 'omics approach (transcriptomics and metabolomics) to develop an early-warning system for seagrass loss. ....Early Detection of Seagrass Habitat Loss Caused by Eutrophication. Eutrophication (nutrient over-enrichment) caused by a host of anthropogenic activities is recognised as the most widespread cause of seagrass loss. In order to effectively control seagrass loss, there is an urgent need to determine the link between eutrophication and seagrass loss. This project aims to undertake an innovative 'omics approach (transcriptomics and metabolomics) to develop an early-warning system for seagrass loss. The acclimation and plasticity of seagrass to sub-lethal stress induced by eutrophication will be investigated at the molecular and biochemical levels. This will allow mitigation responses such as altered catchment management processes to prevent damage before meadows are lost.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE130101084
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$375,000.00
Summary
From sink to source: does microbial priming of degraded seagrasses contribute to global warming? Australian seagrasses are among the planet's most effective natural systems for removing greenhouse gases; but, if degraded, they could leak stored carbon and accelerate global warming. This project will test the emerging paradigm that microbes control carbon leakage, thereby providing information to ensure that seagrass carbon remains locked away.
The role of plant-soil feedback in biodiversity maintenance along fertility gradients: from patterns to mechanisms. Plants strongly modify soils and their associated biota, which in turn has important consequences for plant growth. This is known as 'plant-soil feedback'. This project will determine whether such feedback plays a role in maintaining the exceptionally high levels of plant biodiversity found in the kwongan shrublands of south-western Australia.
Novel habitat quality assessment to inform the development of recreational boating infrastructure. As Australians migrate towards the coast, the demand for recreational boating facilities such as moorings and marinas is increasing rapidly. These structures can remove habitat and fragment the seascape in a similar manner to roads and clearings in forest and grasslands. Coastal infrastructure can also reduce the quality of existing habitats and their full impact must be assessed if the diversity a ....Novel habitat quality assessment to inform the development of recreational boating infrastructure. As Australians migrate towards the coast, the demand for recreational boating facilities such as moorings and marinas is increasing rapidly. These structures can remove habitat and fragment the seascape in a similar manner to roads and clearings in forest and grasslands. Coastal infrastructure can also reduce the quality of existing habitats and their full impact must be assessed if the diversity and function of coastal seascapes is to be conserved. This project aims to use a combination of novel modelling, surveys, and large experiments to understand how threatened seagrass, fish, and sediment habitats are altered in human modified seascapes, and to assess the success of habitat restoration following the removal of boating structures.Read moreRead less