Can eco-evolutionary theories explain outcomes of microbiome coalescence . Environmental microbial communities are among the most abundant and diverse natural communities, responsible for many ecologically and economically important ecosystem functions, including primary productivity and climate regulation. This project aims to identify the biotic and abiotic factors that regulate community and functional outcomes of microbiome coalescence (the mixing of two different communities) caused by natu ....Can eco-evolutionary theories explain outcomes of microbiome coalescence . Environmental microbial communities are among the most abundant and diverse natural communities, responsible for many ecologically and economically important ecosystem functions, including primary productivity and climate regulation. This project aims to identify the biotic and abiotic factors that regulate community and functional outcomes of microbiome coalescence (the mixing of two different communities) caused by natural and anthropogenic activities. The outcomes will provide a unifying ecological framework to predict variation in microbiomes across different scales, ecosystem types and disturbances, and will generate critical knowledge for the development of effective microbiome products, a rapidly growing industryRead moreRead less
Placental nutrient transport shows how complex traits evolve. This project aims to use amino acid transport in the vertebrate placenta as a model to demonstrate how genes are recruited and modified to produce a major organ. Using an innovative combination of a new technology, selected reaction monitoring, and transcriptomic and molecular approaches, plus carefully selected Australian species pairs, this project will study the evolution of a complex trait (placental amino acid transport). The pr ....Placental nutrient transport shows how complex traits evolve. This project aims to use amino acid transport in the vertebrate placenta as a model to demonstrate how genes are recruited and modified to produce a major organ. Using an innovative combination of a new technology, selected reaction monitoring, and transcriptomic and molecular approaches, plus carefully selected Australian species pairs, this project will study the evolution of a complex trait (placental amino acid transport). The project will provide fundamental advances in our knowledge of the nutrient transport during pregnancy that is required to produce a healthy baby.Read moreRead less
Precision ecology: the modern era of designed experiments in plant ecology. This project aims to develop the field of precision ecology, forging a new era of designed experiments where sampling is informed by research questions and what is known about the ecological process being studied. Through the development of novel statistical methods, new experiments globally will be designed to answer important ecological questions including what influence abiotic and biotic factors have on plant commun ....Precision ecology: the modern era of designed experiments in plant ecology. This project aims to develop the field of precision ecology, forging a new era of designed experiments where sampling is informed by research questions and what is known about the ecological process being studied. Through the development of novel statistical methods, new experiments globally will be designed to answer important ecological questions including what influence abiotic and biotic factors have on plant communities over time and different spatial scales. Expected outcomes include new methods and tools that will modernise how future experiments will be conducted in plant ecology. This will provide significant transdisciplinary benefits including new statistical methods that target scientific discovery in ecological studies.Read moreRead less
Multitrophic interactions drive diversity-ecosystem function relationships. Soil communities, among the most abundant and diverse in nature are responsible for many critical ecosystem functions, including nutrient cycling and climate regulation. This project will determine whether consideration and quantification of interactions between different biotic communities – specifically among plants, soil microbes and animals, within and across trophic levels - can address underlying shortcomings in pr ....Multitrophic interactions drive diversity-ecosystem function relationships. Soil communities, among the most abundant and diverse in nature are responsible for many critical ecosystem functions, including nutrient cycling and climate regulation. This project will determine whether consideration and quantification of interactions between different biotic communities – specifically among plants, soil microbes and animals, within and across trophic levels - can address underlying shortcomings in predictions from classical biodiversity-ecosystem function theory. By advancing understanding of biological complexity and its impacts on ecosystem functions, the project will provide a unifying framework for understanding variation in ecosystem functions across scales, ecosystem types and multiple environmental disturbances.Read moreRead less
Combining biomechanics and movement ecology of kangaroos and relatives. Kangaroos and their relatives are unique in their body form, hopping gait and by the fact that increased speed does not come at an increased energetic cost. This project aims to build 3D musculoskeletal models to understand how muscles and tendons interact, enabling greater distances to be travelled using less energy. Further, it will use animal tracking devices and machine-learning tools to quantify movements in the wild. T ....Combining biomechanics and movement ecology of kangaroos and relatives. Kangaroos and their relatives are unique in their body form, hopping gait and by the fact that increased speed does not come at an increased energetic cost. This project aims to build 3D musculoskeletal models to understand how muscles and tendons interact, enabling greater distances to be travelled using less energy. Further, it will use animal tracking devices and machine-learning tools to quantify movements in the wild. This framework will provide novel insights into how energetics, morphology, and habitat have shaped the evolution of this unique group. This may open doors to a range of future ecological, physiological, and conservation studies and provide biological inspiration for energetically efficient robotic and assistive devices.Read moreRead less
Tree-mediated methane fluxes: A new frontier in the global carbon cycle. Methane is an extremely potent greenhouse gas. Recent evidence suggests that tree-mediated fluxes may be a significant, but overlooked source of methane to the atmosphere. This project aims to quantify the magnitude and drivers of tree-mediated methane fluxes from Australia’s dominant forest types. Innovatively, we will be using a novel combination of empirical field based measurements, gas tracer experiments, microbial ana ....Tree-mediated methane fluxes: A new frontier in the global carbon cycle. Methane is an extremely potent greenhouse gas. Recent evidence suggests that tree-mediated fluxes may be a significant, but overlooked source of methane to the atmosphere. This project aims to quantify the magnitude and drivers of tree-mediated methane fluxes from Australia’s dominant forest types. Innovatively, we will be using a novel combination of empirical field based measurements, gas tracer experiments, microbial analysis and modelling methods. Expected outcomes are a mechanistic understanding of tree-mediated methane fluxes, helping to constrain regional, national and global methane budgets. The results of this study will help inform publicly funded greenhouse gas abatement strategies, ensuring a maximal return on investment.Read moreRead less
A Universal Power Law for Growth and Diversity of Dinosaur and Bird Beaks. Universal rules that govern how animals grow have tremendous power to explain the highly complex processes of growth and development. The project investigators have recently discovered a new rule of growth that controls how teeth, horns, claws and beaks are generated in animals. This project aims to use this new rule to examine the evolution and diversity of beaks in birds and dinosaurs. By combining 3D modelling, biomech ....A Universal Power Law for Growth and Diversity of Dinosaur and Bird Beaks. Universal rules that govern how animals grow have tremendous power to explain the highly complex processes of growth and development. The project investigators have recently discovered a new rule of growth that controls how teeth, horns, claws and beaks are generated in animals. This project aims to use this new rule to examine the evolution and diversity of beaks in birds and dinosaurs. By combining 3D modelling, biomechanics and genetic analysis of bird beak development with the study of dinosaur fossils, this project expects to reveal the underlying processes controlling the growth and evolution of beaks. The anticipated goal of this project is to show the power of new theoretical models to explain the diversity of life.Read moreRead less
Does coevolution drive speciation? This project aims to connect micro-evolutionary processes with macro-evolutionary patterns to test the extent to which tightly coupled co-evolutionary interactions between species drive evolutionary diversification. The project will use techniques including the most recent phylogenetic modelling methods, field experiments and molecular genetics. Expected outcomes include advancing understanding of the mechanisms that generate biodiversity and developing new tec ....Does coevolution drive speciation? This project aims to connect micro-evolutionary processes with macro-evolutionary patterns to test the extent to which tightly coupled co-evolutionary interactions between species drive evolutionary diversification. The project will use techniques including the most recent phylogenetic modelling methods, field experiments and molecular genetics. Expected outcomes include advancing understanding of the mechanisms that generate biodiversity and developing new techniques for acquisition of DNA from museum specimens. The project is expected to provide significant benefits, such as insights into the processes that promote new species in nature.Read moreRead less
Shallow water carbonate sediment dissolution in the global carbon cycle. Carbonate sediment dissolution is a globally significant process, but poorly understood in shallow marine waters. This project will determine whether the combined effect of organic matter, ocean acidification and pore water flow in shallow water carbonate sediments increases the release of calcium and alkalinity to the ocean. This project is significant because this release has not previously been accounted for and may lead ....Shallow water carbonate sediment dissolution in the global carbon cycle. Carbonate sediment dissolution is a globally significant process, but poorly understood in shallow marine waters. This project will determine whether the combined effect of organic matter, ocean acidification and pore water flow in shallow water carbonate sediments increases the release of calcium and alkalinity to the ocean. This project is significant because this release has not previously been accounted for and may lead to an additional uptake of atmospheric carbon dioxide into the global ocean, maybe some additional buffering against ocean acidification, but unfortunately, maybe also a loss of carbonate ecosystems. The outcomes of this project will make a significant contribution to our understanding of the global carbon cycle.
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Skin in the game: biomimetics, fitness and the springtail cuticle. This project aims to examine the relationship between cuticle (skin) properties, water balance, and fitness in springtails, key players in soil systems. Springtail cuticles are diverse, responsive, and extremely resistant to wetting by water, alcohol and other substances. Their Australian diversity has not been well explored for biomimetic new materials. This project expects to explore options for new applications in materials sc ....Skin in the game: biomimetics, fitness and the springtail cuticle. This project aims to examine the relationship between cuticle (skin) properties, water balance, and fitness in springtails, key players in soil systems. Springtail cuticles are diverse, responsive, and extremely resistant to wetting by water, alcohol and other substances. Their Australian diversity has not been well explored for biomimetic new materials. This project expects to explore options for new applications in materials science and engineering by generalising the cuticle structure-function relationship. Expected outcomes are new information to harness for industry the diversity of nature’s self-cleaning, water repellent surfaces. Significant benefits lie in potential new biomimetic manufacturing options.Read moreRead less