Frayed at the edges? Integrating evolutionary genetics into the study of species distributional limits. Restricted species, like those in rainforests, represent the vast majority of biodiversity, but they face high risks of extinction due to climate change unless they can adapt. Using butterflies as a model, this project will examine whether rainforest restricted species are able to adapt to future climate change and provide insight into their extinction risk.
Does dynamic ecological change cause rapid evolution? This project aims to increase understanding of how Australia’s native biota responds to rapid environmental changes. Abrupt environmental change has the potential to drive rapid evolution, which may facilitate species persistence in the face of novel challenges. This project will use long-term genomic data to quantify rates of evolutionary change in species living in arid environments, whose populations fluctuate markedly in response to rainf ....Does dynamic ecological change cause rapid evolution? This project aims to increase understanding of how Australia’s native biota responds to rapid environmental changes. Abrupt environmental change has the potential to drive rapid evolution, which may facilitate species persistence in the face of novel challenges. This project will use long-term genomic data to quantify rates of evolutionary change in species living in arid environments, whose populations fluctuate markedly in response to rainfall variation. By measuring the pace of genomic change in these species, and the evolutionary processes driving that change, this project will reveal species’ evolutionary responses to major environmental fluctuations.Read moreRead less
Packed to perform: the effects of telomere traits and free radicals on sperm phenotypes, fertilization success, and offspring viability. This project will integrate telomeres, free radicals and sperm biology into a coherent research program on the roles of free radicals in eroding telomeres and dictating: success in sperm competition and cryptic female choice; longevity and life time fitness in the wild; and, transgenerational effects on offspring viability, in particular mediated via paternal t ....Packed to perform: the effects of telomere traits and free radicals on sperm phenotypes, fertilization success, and offspring viability. This project will integrate telomeres, free radicals and sperm biology into a coherent research program on the roles of free radicals in eroding telomeres and dictating: success in sperm competition and cryptic female choice; longevity and life time fitness in the wild; and, transgenerational effects on offspring viability, in particular mediated via paternal telomere length. Specifically, the project researches how sperm telomere length in sires shorten under stress and how this epigenetic effect is transferred from sires to sons and potentially moderates also filial success in sperm competition and attractiveness in cryptic female choice. Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE220100466
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$462,647.00
Summary
Mito-nuclear coevolution as an engine of biodiversity. This project aims to advance understanding of the processes that drive speciation and generate biodiversity. It will use Australia’s native social bees to test whether genetic diversity in mitochondrial genomes drives biodiversity at the population level, combining molecular and field studies in this uniquely tractable natural system. The expected outcome is a significant advance in knowledge of how coevolution between the two genomes of euk ....Mito-nuclear coevolution as an engine of biodiversity. This project aims to advance understanding of the processes that drive speciation and generate biodiversity. It will use Australia’s native social bees to test whether genetic diversity in mitochondrial genomes drives biodiversity at the population level, combining molecular and field studies in this uniquely tractable natural system. The expected outcome is a significant advance in knowledge of how coevolution between the two genomes of eukaryotic cells - mitochondrial and nuclear - affect the observable diversity of the natural world. The project is also expected to benefit the management and conservation of Australian native bees, which are vital pollinators in our natural and agro-ecosystems. Read moreRead less
Predicting adaptive responses to climate change in Australian native bees. This project aims to understand how insects will adapt to climate change by examining a largely overlooked but economically important group of species: Australian native bees. Native bees are important pollinators of both crops and native plants, but their sensitivity to changes in climate are unknown. Expected outcomes include new knowledge of the resilience of native bees to climate change, and new effective tools for p ....Predicting adaptive responses to climate change in Australian native bees. This project aims to understand how insects will adapt to climate change by examining a largely overlooked but economically important group of species: Australian native bees. Native bees are important pollinators of both crops and native plants, but their sensitivity to changes in climate are unknown. Expected outcomes include new knowledge of the resilience of native bees to climate change, and new effective tools for predicting climate change resilience that can be applied to many species. The intended benefits include increasing our understanding of the potential for native bees to act as future pollinators in Australia’s natural and agro-ecosystems, and guide policy and management decisions to better protect and conserve our bee fauna.Read moreRead less
Adaptive capacity of marine invertebrates in a climate change ocean. As the oceans simultaneously warm and acidify, prospects for marine biota are of concern. This project aims to determine the potential for phenotypic adjustment and evolutionary adaptation. To discern the roles of phenotype and genotype in marine invertebrate stress tolerance this project endeavours to use selection experiments, long-term rearing and quantitative genetics . A focus on vulnerable calcification systems could dete ....Adaptive capacity of marine invertebrates in a climate change ocean. As the oceans simultaneously warm and acidify, prospects for marine biota are of concern. This project aims to determine the potential for phenotypic adjustment and evolutionary adaptation. To discern the roles of phenotype and genotype in marine invertebrate stress tolerance this project endeavours to use selection experiments, long-term rearing and quantitative genetics . A focus on vulnerable calcification systems could determine genetic mechanisms underlying impaired growth. Investigation of species from the east Australia latitudinal thermal gradient, a global change hot spot could generate insights into biological responses and adaptive potential in a changing ocean and on time scales relevant to resource managers to understand the challenges faced by marine biota.Read moreRead less
The nutritional geometry of parental diet. This project aims to investigate the effects of ancestors’ diet on descendants’ development and performance. Recognition that an individual’s diet can affect its descendants’ features and health influences biology and medicine, but limitations of conventional research methodologies make understanding such effects incomplete. The Nutritional Geometry framework enables researchers to analyse effects of diet composition as complex response surfaces, and ha ....The nutritional geometry of parental diet. This project aims to investigate the effects of ancestors’ diet on descendants’ development and performance. Recognition that an individual’s diet can affect its descendants’ features and health influences biology and medicine, but limitations of conventional research methodologies make understanding such effects incomplete. The Nutritional Geometry framework enables researchers to analyse effects of diet composition as complex response surfaces, and has recently been used in research on parental diet effects. Building on this breakthrough, this project intends to analyse the effects of ancestors’ diet, and test hypotheses relevant to evolution, ecology and human health.Read moreRead less
Can sexual conflict contribute to a resolution of the paradox of sex? Despite over a century of research, it remains unclear why most animals can reproduce only via sex. An exciting new hypothesis proposes that sexual conflict can promote sexual reproduction and inhibit asexual strategies, suggesting a potential solution to this long-standing paradox. Building on my research expertise, and using a native Australian insect species in which the role of sexual conflict can be studied in natural pop ....Can sexual conflict contribute to a resolution of the paradox of sex? Despite over a century of research, it remains unclear why most animals can reproduce only via sex. An exciting new hypothesis proposes that sexual conflict can promote sexual reproduction and inhibit asexual strategies, suggesting a potential solution to this long-standing paradox. Building on my research expertise, and using a native Australian insect species in which the role of sexual conflict can be studied in natural populations, this ambitious project aims to test this hypothesis for the first time. This research will expand knowledge in the biological sciences by helping to answer one of the most challenging questions in evolutionary biology. This work will also contribute to efforts to monitor Australia's unique insect fauna.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE180100526
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$342,551.00
Summary
Unifying cornerstones of social evolution: theory and application. This proposal aims to reconcile and unify alternative methods in social evolution theory, one of the foundations of our modern understanding of evolutionary and behavioural ecology. Social evolution has been controversial, but recent years have seen major developments. By combining mathematical models and empirical data, this project expects to end the controversies by removing boundaries between theoretical approaches. Specific ....Unifying cornerstones of social evolution: theory and application. This proposal aims to reconcile and unify alternative methods in social evolution theory, one of the foundations of our modern understanding of evolutionary and behavioural ecology. Social evolution has been controversial, but recent years have seen major developments. By combining mathematical models and empirical data, this project expects to end the controversies by removing boundaries between theoretical approaches. Specific applications of theory include social insect evolution, individuality and selection in plants. Unification of theory is expected to enhance research capacity in Australia and internationally.Read moreRead less
How mates and sexual rivals affect reproductive costs, lifespan and ageing. This project aims to dissect the complex costs of reproduction, bridging an old divide between evolutionary and biomedical approaches to understanding ageing and lifespan. Merely detecting the smell of another individual, without ever encountering them, can cause an individual to mature sooner, age faster, or live a shorter life. These costs, and the fact that subsequent mating can restore adult ageing and lifespan to "n ....How mates and sexual rivals affect reproductive costs, lifespan and ageing. This project aims to dissect the complex costs of reproduction, bridging an old divide between evolutionary and biomedical approaches to understanding ageing and lifespan. Merely detecting the smell of another individual, without ever encountering them, can cause an individual to mature sooner, age faster, or live a shorter life. These costs, and the fact that subsequent mating can restore adult ageing and lifespan to "normal" are causing a re-evaluation of the costs of reproduction - an important but enigmatic concept in evolution. This project expects to resolve how and why the physical presence of a mate, or odour cues of such a mate, can have such dramatic effects on ageing and late-life performance.Read moreRead less