Discovering how termites use vibrations to make foraging decisions. Termites are pests affecting one third of Australian homes. The annual cost of treatment and damage repair is over $20 billion worldwide. Yet, little is known about how termites make foraging decisions based on vibrations. This project will study the key features in vibration signals produced by termites to unlock the secrets of their foraging behaviour.
An evolutionary approach to understanding chemical cues used in mate choice. This project will combine evolutionary biology with molecular and chemical ecology to gain a fundamental understanding of the role chemicals play in animal communication. By drawing on novel and innovative techniques, this project will place Australia at the forefront of this discipline and contribute to Australia's capacity to control pests.
What drives parasite spread through social networks: lessons from lizards. Australia's biodiversity is continually threatened by new epidemics of local and foreign diseases and parasites. This project will enhance our understanding of how these diseases spread, allowing more effective controls to be developed to protect wildlife species, animal populations and, ultimately, Australian ecosystems.
Parasite transmission through social networks in the pygmy bluetongue lizard. Australia's biodiversity is continually threatened by new epidemics of diseases and parasites, some local, others from overseas. This project will provide information on how they spread so that more effective management of these diseases can be developed to protect wildlife species, animal populations and, ultimately, Australian ecosystems.
Manipulating population sex ratio to eradicate invasive mouse populations. This project aims to use house mice, an Australian pest of economic importance which is also a highly tractable system for testing evolutionary theory and generating practical outcomes. Manipulating population sex ratio is a powerful tool for either enhancing the viability of threatened species or decimating pests. However, despite much scientific effort testing sex ratio theory, the cryptic mechanisms driving sex allocat ....Manipulating population sex ratio to eradicate invasive mouse populations. This project aims to use house mice, an Australian pest of economic importance which is also a highly tractable system for testing evolutionary theory and generating practical outcomes. Manipulating population sex ratio is a powerful tool for either enhancing the viability of threatened species or decimating pests. However, despite much scientific effort testing sex ratio theory, the cryptic mechanisms driving sex allocation remain unidentified, hindering progress in these fields. The project will identify the mechanisms by which sex ratio adjustments are made and establish how individual-level responses influence insular population structure and growth. It will provide benefits by assisting Australia's efforts in eradicating invasive mouse populations.Read moreRead less
What happens to coral reefs without cleaner fish? Marine 'mosquitoes' regularly attack coral reef fish, but are controlled by parasite-eating cleaner fish. Cleaners positively affect reef communities in many ways and this is disproportionate to their tiny size and low density. Their removal for aquarium trades may have staggering effects on reefs. The project will determine how cleaners cause such effects.
From individuals to mass organisation: aggregation, synchronisation and collective movement in locusts. By combining field biology, robotics and mathematics, this project will determine how animals flock or swarm and, in particular, how locust nymphs control their collective movement over their lifetime. The mathematical models derived during the project will be directly applied to controlling outbreaks of locusts in Australia, South and North Africa.
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE130100709
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$375,000.00
Summary
Assessing pollination services of honey bees in native ecosystems and threats posed by parasites. The European honeybee is our most abundant pollinator but we know little about its role in native Australian ecosystems or how its many diseases may affect its ability to pollinate. This project will determine whether honeybees are important pollinators of native plants and how a common parasite affects their pollination ability.
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE130100833
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$375,000.00
Summary
The nutritional regulation of food chain length in terrestrial arthropod communities. Little is known about how the behaviour of individual animals affects the structure and function of ecological communities. By quantifying the diet requirements of predators and comparing them to the nutrients in prey at different trophic levels, this project will test if nutrient-based foraging by predators regulates food chain length in arthropod communities.