Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE200100490
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$426,742.00
Summary
Understanding infection tolerance to improve management of wildlife disease. This project aims to investigate tolerance (the ability to limit the detrimental effects of infection) as a key animal defence strategy against disease. It focuses on diseases in natural systems, using the devastating amphibian fungal skin disease, chytridiomycosis, as a model. Expected outcomes include improved understanding of the relative importance of tolerance and resistance, and insight into the key immune and phy ....Understanding infection tolerance to improve management of wildlife disease. This project aims to investigate tolerance (the ability to limit the detrimental effects of infection) as a key animal defence strategy against disease. It focuses on diseases in natural systems, using the devastating amphibian fungal skin disease, chytridiomycosis, as a model. Expected outcomes include improved understanding of the relative importance of tolerance and resistance, and insight into the key immune and physiologic mechanisms underlying variations in tolerance. Anticipated benefits include improved strategies for mitigating infectious wildlife diseases via identifying targets for therapeutic interventions, ecological management and assisted-evolution strategies. This project should also benefit amphibian conservation globally.Read moreRead less
Acoustics for Large Scale Biodiversity Assessment. Aims: This project will investigate using automated acoustic recording to efficiently census biodiversity assessment at a continental scale.
Significance: To generate new techniques for analysing environmental acoustic data and assessing Australian biodiversity, verified empirical estimates of biodiversity, an understanding of causes of variation in biodiversity.
Expected outcomes: methods for large-scale and accurate assessment of biodiversity ....Acoustics for Large Scale Biodiversity Assessment. Aims: This project will investigate using automated acoustic recording to efficiently census biodiversity assessment at a continental scale.
Significance: To generate new techniques for analysing environmental acoustic data and assessing Australian biodiversity, verified empirical estimates of biodiversity, an understanding of causes of variation in biodiversity.
Expected outcomes: methods for large-scale and accurate assessment of biodiversity, enhanced capacity to detect causes of variation in biodiversity, open-source software tools for analysing environmental audio data, biodiversity datasets.
Benefits: measuring and understanding biodiversity change, allowing enhanced management, conservation, and use of Australian natural resources.
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Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE170101466
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$372,000.00
Summary
Can Indigenous land management forestall an extinction crisis? This project aims to test the theory that a lack of Indigenous land management precipitated the collapse of Australia's mammal fauna. Current rates of species extinction exceed background rates by 100-1000 times, because of changes to ecosystems by humans. Paradoxically, Australia’s most pressing extinction crisis could be due to too little human disturbance. This project will test Indigenous land management’s capacity to forestall f ....Can Indigenous land management forestall an extinction crisis? This project aims to test the theory that a lack of Indigenous land management precipitated the collapse of Australia's mammal fauna. Current rates of species extinction exceed background rates by 100-1000 times, because of changes to ecosystems by humans. Paradoxically, Australia’s most pressing extinction crisis could be due to too little human disturbance. This project will test Indigenous land management’s capacity to forestall further mammal declines and restore degraded ecosystems, and enhance Indigenous livelihoods. Anticipated outcomes include on-ground principles for integrating Indigenous knowledge into biodiversity conservation, and transformative insights on the interdependence of humans and their environment.Read moreRead less
Understanding the tipping point between epidemic and endemic disease: amphibian chytridiomycosis as a model system. The amphibian disease chytridiomycosis has caused declines and extinctions in Australian frogs; it is very sensitive to environmental conditions, and changes in climate or weather could cause outbreaks that would eliminate many more species. This project will build greater understanding as to how and when that could occur and prevent it from happening.
Australian Laureate Fellowships - Grant ID: FL120100108
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$2,849,770.00
Summary
Surrogate ecology: when and where can it work to improve environmental management? New empirical analyses and new ecological theory will be used to discover where, when and how to best apply surrogates. New capacity will be built in surrogate ecology and the results used to significantly enhance the effective management and monitoring of environments and biodiversity both in Australia and worldwide.
Preventing and reversing population declines of northern quolls. This project seeks to develop novel effective strategies to halt and reverse declines in northern quolls by improving their ‘toad-smart’ behaviour. The spread of cane toads threaten northern quolls, which are marsupial predators. We cannot halt the toad invasion, but we can train quolls not to eat cane toads. Trained quolls can survive long term in toad-infested landscapes, and their offspring can learn not to eat toads. This proje ....Preventing and reversing population declines of northern quolls. This project seeks to develop novel effective strategies to halt and reverse declines in northern quolls by improving their ‘toad-smart’ behaviour. The spread of cane toads threaten northern quolls, which are marsupial predators. We cannot halt the toad invasion, but we can train quolls not to eat cane toads. Trained quolls can survive long term in toad-infested landscapes, and their offspring can learn not to eat toads. This project builds on this work by focusing on cultural and genetic transmission of toad-smart behaviour. The project could save numerous quoll populations from extinction.Read moreRead less
Urban Rewilding: Ecologically and Community-informed Futures. Biodiversity is highly threatened in Australian cities. This project aims to prevent further wildlife loss by creating a blueprint for the ecological restoration of urban spaces. Working with seven Councils and three State government agencies in northern Sydney, this project will experimentally assess a new approach to conservation by restoring regionally-present but locally-missing wildlife. Expected outcomes include the restoration ....Urban Rewilding: Ecologically and Community-informed Futures. Biodiversity is highly threatened in Australian cities. This project aims to prevent further wildlife loss by creating a blueprint for the ecological restoration of urban spaces. Working with seven Councils and three State government agencies in northern Sydney, this project will experimentally assess a new approach to conservation by restoring regionally-present but locally-missing wildlife. Expected outcomes include the restoration of ecosystem services provided by wildlife and increased opportunities for community engagement with nature. Project benefits include initiating rewilding in urban areas, improved public education on the benefits of restoring wildlife and greater potential to conserve our biodiversity and cultural heritage.Read moreRead less
Vulnerability of Australian bats to white-nose syndrome. Australia's unique wildlife is inherently at risk from invasive novel pathogens. White-nose syndrome is an emerging fungal disease that has decimated bat populations across North America. This fungal disease is likely to soon jump continents and also seriously threaten Australia's bat fauna. This project aims to quantify the risk of exposure to this fungus and understand the sensitivity of Australian bat populations to white-nose syndrome ....Vulnerability of Australian bats to white-nose syndrome. Australia's unique wildlife is inherently at risk from invasive novel pathogens. White-nose syndrome is an emerging fungal disease that has decimated bat populations across North America. This fungal disease is likely to soon jump continents and also seriously threaten Australia's bat fauna. This project aims to quantify the risk of exposure to this fungus and understand the sensitivity of Australian bat populations to white-nose syndrome mortality. Expected outcomes include spatially-explicit, species-specific models of vulnerability to white-nose syndrome for bat populations across south-eastern Australia, essential for directing actions to prevent, detect and mitigate the impacts of this potentially catastrophic wildlife disease.Read moreRead less
Reintroduction of ecosystem engineers as a woodland restoration tool. Can we help restore woodlands by reintroducing extinct native mammals? Through a strategic partnership combining innovative research and conservation action, this project will investigate how returning extinct 'ecosystem engineers' could be used as a tool for restoring healthy temperate woodland ecosystems.
Urban Rewilding: Ecologically and Community-informed Futures. Biodiversity is highly threatened in Australian cities. This project aims to prevent further wildlife loss by creating a blueprint for the ecological restoration of urban spaces. Working with seven Councils and three State government agencies in northern Sydney, this project will experimentally assess a new approach to conservation by restoring regionally-present but locally-missing wildlife. Expected outcomes include the restoration ....Urban Rewilding: Ecologically and Community-informed Futures. Biodiversity is highly threatened in Australian cities. This project aims to prevent further wildlife loss by creating a blueprint for the ecological restoration of urban spaces. Working with seven Councils and three State government agencies in northern Sydney, this project will experimentally assess a new approach to conservation by restoring regionally-present but locally-missing wildlife. Expected outcomes include the restoration of ecosystem services provided by wildlife and increased opportunities for community engagement with nature. Project benefits include initiating rewilding in urban areas, improved public education on the benefits of restoring wildlife and greater potential to conserve our biodiversity and cultural heritage.Read moreRead less