Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE120102575
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$375,000.00
Summary
Exploring new territory in climatic adaptation research: integrating molecular genetics with species' thermal tolerance limits. Predicting species' responses to environmental change requires mechanistic links between whole-organism physiological stress responses and underlying cellular mechanics. This project integrates cutting-edge methods in molecular and evolutionary genetics to probe species' responses to environmental change in the context of a warming environment.
How do Microbes Grow in High Salt at Very Cold Temperatures. The proposed research aims to define mechanisms of survival and speciation that underpin the capacity of a novel group of Antarctic microorganisms to evolve dominance in their very cold (-20 degrees Celsius) and very salty environment. Most (~85 per cent) of the Earth's biosphere is cold (<5 degrees Celsius), and yet contains a rich diversity of microorganisms of which we know little. The uniqueness and sensitivity of Antarctica partic ....How do Microbes Grow in High Salt at Very Cold Temperatures. The proposed research aims to define mechanisms of survival and speciation that underpin the capacity of a novel group of Antarctic microorganisms to evolve dominance in their very cold (-20 degrees Celsius) and very salty environment. Most (~85 per cent) of the Earth's biosphere is cold (<5 degrees Celsius), and yet contains a rich diversity of microorganisms of which we know little. The uniqueness and sensitivity of Antarctica particularly demands that we rapidly improve our understanding of its biology. The discoveries made could provide fundamental insight about speciation - processes controlling which life forms that colonise the planet.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE180100629
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$365,058.00
Summary
Evolutionary impacts of climate change in Australia’s fossil record. This project aims to identify evolutionary responses to climate change in Australia's fossil record by comparing variation in lizard and frog communities across geological time. Using X-ray techniques on museum specimens, this project will generate a large-scale database for tracking evolutionary shifts in relation to historical climatic events. Expected outcomes include the first anatomical descriptions for many species, filli ....Evolutionary impacts of climate change in Australia’s fossil record. This project aims to identify evolutionary responses to climate change in Australia's fossil record by comparing variation in lizard and frog communities across geological time. Using X-ray techniques on museum specimens, this project will generate a large-scale database for tracking evolutionary shifts in relation to historical climatic events. Expected outcomes include the first anatomical descriptions for many species, filling major gaps in our ability to place fossils in a contemporary framework. This research will demonstrate the value of our national collections for addressing important environmental issues, such as biodiversity, extinction, and future habitat change.Read moreRead less
Understanding how reproduction and sexual conflict drive sex-dependent longevity and ageing. The biological study of longevity and ageing has two important fronts: understanding how evolution shapes lifespan and ageing, and the mechanistic study of how molecules, genes, hormones, tissues and cells interact during ageing. The evolutionary study of ageing is considered one of the success stories of the emerging field of evolutionary medicine, yet we desperately need greater integration of the evol ....Understanding how reproduction and sexual conflict drive sex-dependent longevity and ageing. The biological study of longevity and ageing has two important fronts: understanding how evolution shapes lifespan and ageing, and the mechanistic study of how molecules, genes, hormones, tissues and cells interact during ageing. The evolutionary study of ageing is considered one of the success stories of the emerging field of evolutionary medicine, yet we desperately need greater integration of the evolutionary and mechanistic spheres. This project addresses why males and females have different lifespans and age differently in a way that bridges evolutionary and mechanistic study, and will build Australia's research capacity to study ageing at both levels. Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE150100083
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$540,000.00
Summary
A high throughput phenomics facility for pace of life traits in animals. A high throughput phenomics facility for pace of life traits in animals: This project seeks to create the first high-throughput phenomic facility for animals in Australia. The molecular revolution has brought unprecedented capacity to understand genetic variation. Genetic variation is now better understood and more easily and cheaply characterised than the physical traits that organisms exhibit. Linking phenotypic variation ....A high throughput phenomics facility for pace of life traits in animals. A high throughput phenomics facility for pace of life traits in animals: This project seeks to create the first high-throughput phenomic facility for animals in Australia. The molecular revolution has brought unprecedented capacity to understand genetic variation. Genetic variation is now better understood and more easily and cheaply characterised than the physical traits that organisms exhibit. Linking phenotypic variation to genetic variation represents the major challenge in harnessing the power of the biomolecular age. This facility will accommodate animals from marine, freshwater and terrestrial systems across a diverse array of phyla. It will allow Australian researchers to leverage advances in high throughput genomic technologies to address a major bottleneck in biology.Read moreRead less
Drivers of phenotypic evolution in a vulnerable alpine ecosystem. This project aims to deliver a comprehensive, integrated understanding of the capacity for resilience and drivers of response of highly vulnerable alpine species and communities to climate change. The project aims to determine how communities of interacting alpine plants, soil invertebrates and microbes can cope with or evolve to novel climatic conditions. The mountains are water towers critical to power supply and Australia's agr ....Drivers of phenotypic evolution in a vulnerable alpine ecosystem. This project aims to deliver a comprehensive, integrated understanding of the capacity for resilience and drivers of response of highly vulnerable alpine species and communities to climate change. The project aims to determine how communities of interacting alpine plants, soil invertebrates and microbes can cope with or evolve to novel climatic conditions. The mountains are water towers critical to power supply and Australia's agricultural productivity. Understanding physiological tolerance and the potential for rapid evolutionary responses of plants, animals and communities is necessary to predict impacts of climate change on the future productivity of the vulnerable Australian Alps and to provide novel options for climate adaptation. Read moreRead less
Keeping pace with a changing climate: can Australian plants count on rapid evolution? Integrating field and common-garden experiments with cutting-edge genomic technology, this project will answer the critical question of whether Australia's flora can count on evolution to keep pace with a rapidly changing climate. The project outcomes will inform science-based policies integrating social-economic development and biodiversity conservation.
Multi-trait plasticity in response to a changing climate. This project aims to understand the effect of climate change on natural populations. Phenotypic plasticity (the ability to change phenotype with environment) determines natural populations’ immediate response to environmental change. However, studies of plasticity frequently rely on simplifying assumptions, and understanding the genomic and epigenomic mechanisms underlying plasticity is only just emerging. This project will combine a fine ....Multi-trait plasticity in response to a changing climate. This project aims to understand the effect of climate change on natural populations. Phenotypic plasticity (the ability to change phenotype with environment) determines natural populations’ immediate response to environmental change. However, studies of plasticity frequently rely on simplifying assumptions, and understanding the genomic and epigenomic mechanisms underlying plasticity is only just emerging. This project will combine a fine-scale temperature-manipulation experiment with genomic and multivariate statistical analyses of a native Australian alpine plant. The intended outcome is a comprehensive analysis of whether multi-trait phenotypic plasticity is adaptive; whether it can evolve; and the epigenomic mechanisms that drive it. The project will predict the likely effect of temperature change on alpine plants, and so generate information internationally relevant to the management of populations adapting to climate change and locally relevant to the conservation of Australian montane flora.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
Interacting with change: inter-specific competition and climate change . The project aims to understand how species will adapt to climate change by examining a largely overlooked process: how competition shapes evolutionary responses. Rising temperatures will fundamentally alter where species live, re-shuffling communities. Yet, how changes in community composition will affect the way current assessments of species vulnerability to climate change is generally unknown. Expected outcomes include i ....Interacting with change: inter-specific competition and climate change . The project aims to understand how species will adapt to climate change by examining a largely overlooked process: how competition shapes evolutionary responses. Rising temperatures will fundamentally alter where species live, re-shuffling communities. Yet, how changes in community composition will affect the way current assessments of species vulnerability to climate change is generally unknown. Expected outcomes include improved species models for predicting responses to climate change through the integration of competitive effects with environmental data. The benefit will be an increased accuracy in predictions of species at risk to climate change which will guide policy and management decisions to protect vulnerable environments better.Read moreRead less