Life and times of Beringian biota from luminescence and radiocarbon dating of sedimentary DNA: chronologies for palaeoenvironmental and archaeological archives. This study will yield important new data on the time of entry of humans into a previously uninhabited continent (North America) and the record of subsequent human-environment interactions. The same broad issues apply to Australia, so understanding the sequence and causes of events in Beringia will provide insights into human disruption o ....Life and times of Beringian biota from luminescence and radiocarbon dating of sedimentary DNA: chronologies for palaeoenvironmental and archaeological archives. This study will yield important new data on the time of entry of humans into a previously uninhabited continent (North America) and the record of subsequent human-environment interactions. The same broad issues apply to Australia, so understanding the sequence and causes of events in Beringia will provide insights into human disruption of the Australian ecosystem. The development of improved techniques in palaeogenetics and geochronology will benefit researchers worldwide, increase the capacity for commercial services, and enhance Australia's international standing in cutting edge science. We will train high-quality graduate students and create new collaborative initiatives and opportunities for research, exchange, training and education.Read moreRead less
Linkages between productivity and consistent behavioural traits in fish: implications for harvesting, climate impacts, and selective breeding for aquaculture. The extent to which behavior, growth and reproduction are genetically linked in fish populations is unknown, but critical for predicting the impacts of fish harvesting and climate warming, and developing fish stains for aquaculture. If strongly linked, fish harvest will always remove aggressive, large and productive fish, requiring their p ....Linkages between productivity and consistent behavioural traits in fish: implications for harvesting, climate impacts, and selective breeding for aquaculture. The extent to which behavior, growth and reproduction are genetically linked in fish populations is unknown, but critical for predicting the impacts of fish harvesting and climate warming, and developing fish stains for aquaculture. If strongly linked, fish harvest will always remove aggressive, large and productive fish, requiring their protection; in aquaculture, selecting for productive fish will also increase aggression-related injuries. If not strongly linked, we may be able to select for high productivity and low aggression in fish, or high productivity and low metabolism, thus reducing feed costs in aquaculture associated with aggressive behaviour leading to injury and infection, and reduced growth at warmer temperatures.Read moreRead less
Advances in statistical methods for analysing high dimensional count data. This project will lay the methodological foundations for future studies of ecological communities world-wide: whether studying biodiversity; monitoring and testing for an environmental impact of human activities (such as mining or pollution); studying drivers of ecosystem change such as land use, feral animals or climate change. This project will develop and make available new analysis methods that are more readily interp ....Advances in statistical methods for analysing high dimensional count data. This project will lay the methodological foundations for future studies of ecological communities world-wide: whether studying biodiversity; monitoring and testing for an environmental impact of human activities (such as mining or pollution); studying drivers of ecosystem change such as land use, feral animals or climate change. This project will develop and make available new analysis methods that are more readily interpreted, more powerful and more flexible, and that enable the study of some research questions which are difficult or impossible to answer using current methods (e.g. understanding higher-order interactions at the community level). Future biostatisticians will be trained, partly addressing our critical national shortage.Read moreRead less
Uncovering the evolutionary history of Australasian marsupials: combining molecular phylogenetics and ecological inference. Marsupials are symbolic of the uniqueness of Australia's biological systems and there is widespread public interest in their natural history. Yet we know little of the evolutionary mechanisms that have shaped their biodiversity. This is a critical problem when considered in the context of Australian marsupials having suffered the highest extinction rate of any continental m ....Uncovering the evolutionary history of Australasian marsupials: combining molecular phylogenetics and ecological inference. Marsupials are symbolic of the uniqueness of Australia's biological systems and there is widespread public interest in their natural history. Yet we know little of the evolutionary mechanisms that have shaped their biodiversity. This is a critical problem when considered in the context of Australian marsupials having suffered the highest extinction rate of any continental mammal fauna over the past 200 years. This project will make a major contribution to understanding the origins, timescale and ecological nature of Australasian marsupial evolution. In doing so, it will inform conservation strategy, promote Australasian marsupials as a model system for studying faunal coevolution and develop widely applicable bioinformatic tools.Read moreRead less
The genetic basis of differentiation: Towards a predictive understanding of evolution in the wild. Given that Australia cannot escape the effects of, among others, climate change and habitat deterioration, the question of how this is going to impact Australia's unique flora and fauna is an important one. Since extinction is the final consequence of the inability to adapt with sufficient speed to changing environmental conditions, this raises the issue of how well we understand the processes unde ....The genetic basis of differentiation: Towards a predictive understanding of evolution in the wild. Given that Australia cannot escape the effects of, among others, climate change and habitat deterioration, the question of how this is going to impact Australia's unique flora and fauna is an important one. Since extinction is the final consequence of the inability to adapt with sufficient speed to changing environmental conditions, this raises the issue of how well we understand the processes underlying evolutionary adaptation. This project will provide insight into the process of population divergence and the role of genetics therein, and will enhance our understanding of the effects of environmental change, habitat fragmentation and population bottlenecks on population viability and Australia's biodiversity in general. Read moreRead less
How are weeds adapting to life in Australia? Quantifying the rate and direction of evolution in introduced species. Introduced plants are a major problem throughout Australia. Introduced species are listed as one of the most severe threats to biodiversity in Australia, and managing them costs Australia around $4 billion per annum. The information we gather in this project will tell us what sort of changes introduced plants undergo when they arrive in Australia; how quickly plants can adapt to a ....How are weeds adapting to life in Australia? Quantifying the rate and direction of evolution in introduced species. Introduced plants are a major problem throughout Australia. Introduced species are listed as one of the most severe threats to biodiversity in Australia, and managing them costs Australia around $4 billion per annum. The information we gather in this project will tell us what sort of changes introduced plants undergo when they arrive in Australia; how quickly plants can adapt to a new environment, and what sort of species are best able to adapt to new conditions. We will also ask whether introduced species are still adapting to Australian conditions. If so, then we might expect even more naturalised species to become problem weeds in the future. This sort of knowledge is fundamental to our ability to develop appropriate control programs.Read moreRead less
Invasive plant species and climate change in Australia: predicting the threat and projecting the future. The interaction between climate change and invasive pest species poses a significant threat to Australia's biodiversity. The need for research on both the independent impacts of climate change and invasive species, as well as their interaction, has been clearly identified by both national and state governments, and is identified as a priority under the National Biodiversity and Climate Change ....Invasive plant species and climate change in Australia: predicting the threat and projecting the future. The interaction between climate change and invasive pest species poses a significant threat to Australia's biodiversity. The need for research on both the independent impacts of climate change and invasive species, as well as their interaction, has been clearly identified by both national and state governments, and is identified as a priority under the National Biodiversity and Climate Change Action Plan (2004-2007). The proposed research will assess exotic plant species' responses to climate change, identify potential hotspots of invasion, and provide a risk assessment framework to enable prioritization of exotic plant management under future climate.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE100100141
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$420,000.00
Summary
High-resolution ITRAX XRF core scanning facility for global change research. This facility will enable researchers to obtain high-resolution geochemical profiles in the study of environmental change and climate variability. It will provide archive data on the variation of density and chemical element composition along sediment and soil cores, rock cores, wood samples, speleothems and corals. These archives contain important information such as human activity, climate variability, water quality c ....High-resolution ITRAX XRF core scanning facility for global change research. This facility will enable researchers to obtain high-resolution geochemical profiles in the study of environmental change and climate variability. It will provide archive data on the variation of density and chemical element composition along sediment and soil cores, rock cores, wood samples, speleothems and corals. These archives contain important information such as human activity, climate variability, water quality changes, pollution histories, recent geomorphological change, land-use change, introduction of invasive species and the occurrence of bushfires. A better understanding of the occurrence and timing of these major environmental issues is of national and regional importance.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE100100094
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$110,000.00
Summary
Single-grain optically-stimulated luminescence and dosimetry instruments to service the Sydney metropolitan and greater New South Wales region. This equipment will support projects that address significant environmental challenges in Australia, such as climate change and variability, coastal management and sustainable river and water management, and that assess the impacts and consequences of these challenges for populations living in environmentally sensitive areas. These projects will build on ....Single-grain optically-stimulated luminescence and dosimetry instruments to service the Sydney metropolitan and greater New South Wales region. This equipment will support projects that address significant environmental challenges in Australia, such as climate change and variability, coastal management and sustainable river and water management, and that assess the impacts and consequences of these challenges for populations living in environmentally sensitive areas. These projects will build on established collaborations in Australia, Antarctica and the south-west Pacific and encourage new collaborations with south-east Asian, Egyptian and Argentinean researchers, which will promote Australian research on a world stage. The use of this equipment will also pioneer new dating methodologies to further enhance Australia's place at the forefront of geochronology.Read moreRead less