Towards a balanced veiw of parental effects: gaps, biases and opportunities. This project aims to identify and address knowledge gaps in research on parental effects by employing different methodologies (bibliometrics, systematic mapping) and developing novel methods of meta-analysis. This project expects to generate a more holistic and complete view of parental effects on offspring traits than currently appreciated, by elucidating the role of fathers and offspring in addition to mothers. Expect ....Towards a balanced veiw of parental effects: gaps, biases and opportunities. This project aims to identify and address knowledge gaps in research on parental effects by employing different methodologies (bibliometrics, systematic mapping) and developing novel methods of meta-analysis. This project expects to generate a more holistic and complete view of parental effects on offspring traits than currently appreciated, by elucidating the role of fathers and offspring in addition to mothers. Expected outcomes of the project include advancing the field of parental effects and creating new and powerful meta-analytic methods, opening up new avenues for research synthesis. This should provide significant benefits by directing future research in related fields and inspiring new kinds of meta-analyses across disciplines.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE190100831
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$416,670.00
Summary
The effects of mitochondrial genetic variation on physiology and behaviour. This project aims to test how mitochondrial DNA variation drives molecular, physiological, and behavioural differences between genders and among populations. This project, through the testing of a new hypothesis, expects to generate new knowledge to understand why males and females differ consistently in key health-related traits like longevity. The expected outcomes of this project will provide new discoveries that deli ....The effects of mitochondrial genetic variation on physiology and behaviour. This project aims to test how mitochondrial DNA variation drives molecular, physiological, and behavioural differences between genders and among populations. This project, through the testing of a new hypothesis, expects to generate new knowledge to understand why males and females differ consistently in key health-related traits like longevity. The expected outcomes of this project will provide new discoveries that deliver fundamental insights into the genetics of gender differences, with benefits that extend into the biomedical sciences. The project is also expected to enhance the international profile of Australian science through cutting-edge research in evolutionary genetics.Read moreRead less
Why are warning colours in animals so rare? Toxic insects display warning colours as protection from predators who learn to associate them with an unpleasant taste. Theoretically, there is no limit to the number of species that could show warning colours but only about 5% are estimated to have them. This presents a fundamental and unresolved biological problem - what limits warning colours? This project aims to address this significant biological question by testing three hypotheses predicting w ....Why are warning colours in animals so rare? Toxic insects display warning colours as protection from predators who learn to associate them with an unpleasant taste. Theoretically, there is no limit to the number of species that could show warning colours but only about 5% are estimated to have them. This presents a fundamental and unresolved biological problem - what limits warning colours? This project aims to address this significant biological question by testing three hypotheses predicting warning signal limitations. Projected outcomes are an improved understanding of the ecological niche of these colourful insects, which may inform conservation and biodiversity management and raise awareness of these flamboyant creatures.Read moreRead less
Tracking warning signals across a variable landscape. This project aims to investigate how local environmental factors and predator communities affect warning colour expression across the Australian landscape. Warning colours protect toxic prey from predators who learn to associate the colours with an unpleasant taste. Theoretically, warning colours should not vary, but in nature we find appreciable and unexplained variation. This project will utilise Australia's excellent environmental and biod ....Tracking warning signals across a variable landscape. This project aims to investigate how local environmental factors and predator communities affect warning colour expression across the Australian landscape. Warning colours protect toxic prey from predators who learn to associate the colours with an unpleasant taste. Theoretically, warning colours should not vary, but in nature we find appreciable and unexplained variation. This project will utilise Australia's excellent environmental and biodiversity informatics infrastructure to inform the public and decision makers about the adaptability of animals to environmental change such as predator loss.Read moreRead less
Linking sex-specific adaptation to the evolution of infectious disease. This project aims to examine how differences in the response of males and females to pathogen attack can influence the evolution of infectious disease. This project expects to generate new knowledge in the area of host-pathogen co-evolution, by integrating approaches from the fields of evolutionary genetics, sexual selection, and epidemiology. Expected outcomes include an enhanced capacity to build interdisciplinary collabor ....Linking sex-specific adaptation to the evolution of infectious disease. This project aims to examine how differences in the response of males and females to pathogen attack can influence the evolution of infectious disease. This project expects to generate new knowledge in the area of host-pathogen co-evolution, by integrating approaches from the fields of evolutionary genetics, sexual selection, and epidemiology. Expected outcomes include an enhanced capacity to build interdisciplinary collaborations and development of theory that predicts infection dynamics in any species with separate sexes. This is expected to provide significant benefits, such as improving our knowledge of why the sexes differ and potentially providing new avenues for understanding disease outbreaks and preventing population declines or extinctions.Read moreRead less
Animal camouflage patterns. This project aims to understand whether animal camouflage patterns can produce the illusion of 3D form. By using the latest techniques in 3D computer imaging, vision science and animal behaviour, this work addresses the previously untested but fundamental theory on 3D camouflage patterns. The development of theory on the ecology and evolution of animal patterning will enhance our understanding of the processes that maintain biological diversity. This research is expec ....Animal camouflage patterns. This project aims to understand whether animal camouflage patterns can produce the illusion of 3D form. By using the latest techniques in 3D computer imaging, vision science and animal behaviour, this work addresses the previously untested but fundamental theory on 3D camouflage patterns. The development of theory on the ecology and evolution of animal patterning will enhance our understanding of the processes that maintain biological diversity. This research is expected to have broad impact across multiple disciplines and will inform novel military defence strategies and contribute to emerging bio-inspired technologies.Read moreRead less
The sparrows in the mining towns: a century of adaptation to contamination. Our research will characterise how contamination from the extraction of precious metals can spread through the environment and how it effects a highly urbanised bird – the house sparrow. In many cases, populations of these birds have been intimately associated with mining operations for over a century, and our recent work has provided evidence of adaptation over time. House sparrows provide a great natural system to unde ....The sparrows in the mining towns: a century of adaptation to contamination. Our research will characterise how contamination from the extraction of precious metals can spread through the environment and how it effects a highly urbanised bird – the house sparrow. In many cases, populations of these birds have been intimately associated with mining operations for over a century, and our recent work has provided evidence of adaptation over time. House sparrows provide a great natural system to understand the genetic potential of organisms to adapt to anthropomorphic change in the environment connected with the resources industry. Our work, will bring new insight into the future management of environmental contamination, and the mitigation of adverse effects arising from resource extraction.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE200100500
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$414,089.00
Summary
The role of enemies in the generation of biodiversity. A fundamental question in biology is how new species are generated. The role of abiotic factors has been widely explored, but there is still little known about the role that ecological or behavioural interactions between organisms, such as parasitism or predation, play in the generation of diversity. This project aims to test the importance of anti-predator defences (warning colours) in generating species. It will combine micro- and macroevo ....The role of enemies in the generation of biodiversity. A fundamental question in biology is how new species are generated. The role of abiotic factors has been widely explored, but there is still little known about the role that ecological or behavioural interactions between organisms, such as parasitism or predation, play in the generation of diversity. This project aims to test the importance of anti-predator defences (warning colours) in generating species. It will combine micro- and macroevolutionary analyses to provide an in-depth test of this association. This project aims to provide a bridge between behavioural ecology and macroevolutionary processes, using Australian fauna, and increase our knowledge about whether and how enemies can contribute to generating diversity of life on earth.Read moreRead less
Choosing to persist: sexual selection in the wild. This project aims to investigate the role of sexual selection in maintaining healthy wild populations. The prevailing story of sexual selection, in which the sexes either compete for or choose the other sex, has been of extravagant ornaments and displays that drive species to extinction. However, an opposing story has emerged, with elaborate ornaments reflecting a healthy genome and sexual selection instead sweeping away damaging genetic mater ....Choosing to persist: sexual selection in the wild. This project aims to investigate the role of sexual selection in maintaining healthy wild populations. The prevailing story of sexual selection, in which the sexes either compete for or choose the other sex, has been of extravagant ornaments and displays that drive species to extinction. However, an opposing story has emerged, with elaborate ornaments reflecting a healthy genome and sexual selection instead sweeping away damaging genetic material. This project expects to generate new knowledge on the potential for sexual selection to remove harmful mutations in the wild. Expected outcomes include determining if sexual selection can help prevent extinction in wild populations, with direct benefits for conservation programs.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE180100026
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$365,058.00
Summary
Startle displays: a new route to resolving the aposematism paradox. This project aims to propose an empirical evaluation of startle displays as the ‘missing link’ in antipredator defences. The evolutionary origin of warning colouration is considered paradoxical in that conspicuous mutant prey should be attacked and killed as they evolve, denying predators any chance to learn to avoid them. Startle displays, however, are antipredator defences that exploit predator reflexes through a sudden transi ....Startle displays: a new route to resolving the aposematism paradox. This project aims to propose an empirical evaluation of startle displays as the ‘missing link’ in antipredator defences. The evolutionary origin of warning colouration is considered paradoxical in that conspicuous mutant prey should be attacked and killed as they evolve, denying predators any chance to learn to avoid them. Startle displays, however, are antipredator defences that exploit predator reflexes through a sudden transition from camouflage to warning colouration. This work merges theory on antipredator defences, deepens knowledge of their fitness costs and benefits, and provides a new resolution to a classic evolutionary paradox.Read moreRead less