Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE180100121
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$384,671.00
Summary
Genomic library infrastructure for ancient environmental samples. This project aims to enable automated genome recovery from diverse environmental samples, without contamination risk. For more than 100 years, environmental scientists have studied diverse organism / environment interactions using a variety of conceptual and technical tools. Recently, studies of ancient and historical DNA have come to complement these tools and to occupy a significant place in environmental studies conducted over ....Genomic library infrastructure for ancient environmental samples. This project aims to enable automated genome recovery from diverse environmental samples, without contamination risk. For more than 100 years, environmental scientists have studied diverse organism / environment interactions using a variety of conceptual and technical tools. Recently, studies of ancient and historical DNA have come to complement these tools and to occupy a significant place in environmental studies conducted over serial time. The project’s addition to the existing dual Ancient DNA complex facility at Griffith University will comprise two liquid handling workstations, each being housed in separate, self-contained, ancient DNA laboratories. The new facility will enable many researchers to have unprecedented access to an ancient DNA facility and a high level of technical support.Read moreRead less
An elemental hypothesis for sub-tropical refugia in reef corals. This project aims to discover the underlying traits that permit Australian reef corals to live near the edges of their ranges in relatively cool water. As ocean temperatures warm, novel communities are expected to develop in high latitude ecosystems, which might become important as thermal refugia for low latitude coral reefs. The project aims to test the role of elemental composition (carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus) in coral host ....An elemental hypothesis for sub-tropical refugia in reef corals. This project aims to discover the underlying traits that permit Australian reef corals to live near the edges of their ranges in relatively cool water. As ocean temperatures warm, novel communities are expected to develop in high latitude ecosystems, which might become important as thermal refugia for low latitude coral reefs. The project aims to test the role of elemental composition (carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus) in coral host and symbiont response to changing water temperature along a latitudinal gradient. The intended outcome of the project is to provide knowledge to support predictions of likely species migrations from tropical to subtropical waters, enabling managers to anticipate the future response of coral communities to seawater warming.Read moreRead less
Outfoxing the fox: new cost-effective ways to protect threatened species. This project aims to address the damage caused by invasive foxes by applying new methods of protection for threatened species. This project expects to generate new knowledge in the areas of conservation biology and invasive species management by comparing the effectiveness of fox control strategies for improving the population viability of declining freshwater turtles. Expected outcomes of this project include a community- ....Outfoxing the fox: new cost-effective ways to protect threatened species. This project aims to address the damage caused by invasive foxes by applying new methods of protection for threatened species. This project expects to generate new knowledge in the areas of conservation biology and invasive species management by comparing the effectiveness of fox control strategies for improving the population viability of declining freshwater turtles. Expected outcomes of this project include a community-based conservation model that prevents turtle extinctions in south-eastern Australia at considerable cost savings. Significant benefits include improved management of the impacts of invasive species, and restoration of ecosystem services provided by the scavenging role of freshwater turtles for maintaining water quality.Read moreRead less
Bacterial and host drivers of chlamydial blindness in koalas. Chlamydial infection of the eyes is a significant cause of disease and death in koalas, contributing to the ongoing decline of this native species. Little is known about what influences the outcome of these infections, challenging efforts to manage and control koala chlamydial blindness. This project aims to evaluate whether differences in the infecting Chlamydia pecorum strains or the koala immune response, are associated with the ou ....Bacterial and host drivers of chlamydial blindness in koalas. Chlamydial infection of the eyes is a significant cause of disease and death in koalas, contributing to the ongoing decline of this native species. Little is known about what influences the outcome of these infections, challenging efforts to manage and control koala chlamydial blindness. This project aims to evaluate whether differences in the infecting Chlamydia pecorum strains or the koala immune response, are associated with the outcome of chlamydial ocular infection. In addition to helping us to understand and prevent blindness in koalas, this project should significantly expand our knowledge of the koala immune system and generate an array of koala immunological assays, outcomes that may benefit all koala conservation efforts.Read moreRead less
Integrating climate adaptation into rainforest restoration plantings. This project aims to investigate the impact of within species adaptation to climate on restoratoin success in the Australian Wet Tropics. For a suite of six species of tropical tree frequently employed in rainforest restoration plantings in northeast Queensland, this project aims to test the hypothesis that collecting seed from populations in similar ecoclimatic settings to the planting site will result in superior seedling gr ....Integrating climate adaptation into rainforest restoration plantings. This project aims to investigate the impact of within species adaptation to climate on restoratoin success in the Australian Wet Tropics. For a suite of six species of tropical tree frequently employed in rainforest restoration plantings in northeast Queensland, this project aims to test the hypothesis that collecting seed from populations in similar ecoclimatic settings to the planting site will result in superior seedling growth and survival. The expected outcome is to provide practical advice to restoration practitioners about the importance of matching the provenance of seed source to planting sites, and opportunities for selecting provenances pre-adapted to predicted future climatic conditions at planting sites.Read moreRead less
Private Land Conservation in a Dynamically Changing and Risky World. Climate change, and the increasing risk of drought, heatwaves, and fire, have major implications for the design and effectiveness of private land conservation programs. This project aims to generate new knowledge about the effect of climate change on adoption and outcomes of private land conservation agreements. It will use an innovative social-ecological approach focused on koalas. Expected outcomes include an innovative frame ....Private Land Conservation in a Dynamically Changing and Risky World. Climate change, and the increasing risk of drought, heatwaves, and fire, have major implications for the design and effectiveness of private land conservation programs. This project aims to generate new knowledge about the effect of climate change on adoption and outcomes of private land conservation agreements. It will use an innovative social-ecological approach focused on koalas. Expected outcomes include an innovative framework to help make decisions about private land conservation investments under climate change. This should provide significant benefits for government and non-government organisations by providing solutions to climate-proof their conservation investments on private land in a rapidly changing world.Read moreRead less
Trophic associations involving fish and crustaceans in coastal saltmarsh. Coastal saltmarsh is an endangered ecological community utilised by a diverse assemblage of fish during spring tides. Little attempt has been made to determine why fish visit saltmarsh, or what contribution saltmarsh makes to the diet of fish. This study combines gut analysis with novel approaches involving stable isotopes and radioactive markers to determine trophic interactions between fish and permanent members of the s ....Trophic associations involving fish and crustaceans in coastal saltmarsh. Coastal saltmarsh is an endangered ecological community utilised by a diverse assemblage of fish during spring tides. Little attempt has been made to determine why fish visit saltmarsh, or what contribution saltmarsh makes to the diet of fish. This study combines gut analysis with novel approaches involving stable isotopes and radioactive markers to determine trophic interactions between fish and permanent members of the saltmarsh fauna and flora. The project will provide coastal resource managers with quantifiable indicators of the relative significance of different saltmarsh communities to estuarine fisheries.Read moreRead less
Keystone effects of Australia's top predators: dingoes, devils and biodiversity. This project will study the interactions of Australia's two largest predators, the dingo and Tasmanian devil, with other species. The project will help develop an understanding of the value of these predators in maintaining ecosystem processes and diversity, and guide their management in the future.
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE160100154
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$250,000.00
Summary
The Advanced DNA Identification and Forensics Facility. The advanced DNA identification and forensics facility:
The project aims to establish a national integrated facility for cutting-edge forensic genetic research, resources and expertise in wildlife, forest and environmental DNA identification to improve our capacity to identify unknown biological material. The project’s goal will be to enhance synergies between academic research, service delivery and forensic application of DNA identificati ....The Advanced DNA Identification and Forensics Facility. The advanced DNA identification and forensics facility:
The project aims to establish a national integrated facility for cutting-edge forensic genetic research, resources and expertise in wildlife, forest and environmental DNA identification to improve our capacity to identify unknown biological material. The project’s goal will be to enhance synergies between academic research, service delivery and forensic application of DNA identification technologies, addressing vital questions such as: From which individual or species did this material originate? Where in the world is it from? Is it legal? The proposed facility may deliver applied outcomes for government, the criminal justice system, and industry, such as improved pest and threatened species identification; biosecurity, prosecutions of wildlife crime and illegal logging; and missing person and disaster victim identification.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE180100118
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$159,450.00
Summary
Sensor calibration facility for spectral and thermal remote sensing. This project aims to establish a calibration facility for the radiometric and spectral correction of hyperspectral and thermal sensors for ultrahigh-resolution remote sensing. Sensor calibration and characterisation is critical to the accuracy of hyperspectral and thermal data products, however, there is no central facility in Australia for this purpose. This project will provide significant benefits, such as growing our capaci ....Sensor calibration facility for spectral and thermal remote sensing. This project aims to establish a calibration facility for the radiometric and spectral correction of hyperspectral and thermal sensors for ultrahigh-resolution remote sensing. Sensor calibration and characterisation is critical to the accuracy of hyperspectral and thermal data products, however, there is no central facility in Australia for this purpose. This project will provide significant benefits, such as growing our capacity in ultrahigh-resolution remote sensing for ecosystem science, biosecurity, and disaster response.Read moreRead less