ORCID Profile
0000-0001-5135-0922
Current Organisations
School for Field Studies
,
James Cook University
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Publisher: Wiley
Date: 14-09-2019
DOI: 10.1111/JVS.12800
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 22-03-2023
Abstract: The Lauraceae is a family of the order Laurales, with 2500–3000 species comprising 50 genera, mainly distributed in tropical and subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forests. Up to two decades ago, the systematic classification of the Lauraceae was based on floral morphology, but molecular phylogenetic approaches have made tremendous advances in elucidating tribe- and genus-level relationships within the family in recent decades. Our review focused on the phylogeny and systematics of Sassafras, a genus of three species with highly disjunct distributions in eastern North America and East Asia, whose tribe affiliation within the Lauraceae has long been controversial. By synthesizing information on the floral biology and molecular phylogeny of Sassafras, this review aimed to explore the position of Sassafras within the Lauraceae, and to provide suggestions and implications for future phylogenetic studies. Our synthesis highlighted Sassafras as a transitional type between Cinnamomeae and Laureae with a closer genetic relationship with Cinnamomeae, as revealed by molecular phylogenetic evidence, while it shares many similar characteristics with Laureae in morphology. We therefore discovered that several molecular and morphological methods should be concurrently considered to illuminate the phylogeny and systematics of Sassafras in Lauraceae.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 10-11-2017
Publisher: Frontiers Media SA
Date: 06-10-2014
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 18-02-2012
Publisher: American Bryological and Lichenological Society
Date: 09-2009
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 02-11-2021
Publisher: SciELO Agencia Nacional de Investigacion y Desarrollo (ANID)
Date: 2017
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 30-09-2021
DOI: 10.1038/S41597-021-01006-6
Abstract: We introduce the AusTraits database - a compilation of values of plant traits for taxa in the Australian flora (hereafter AusTraits). AusTraits synthesises data on 448 traits across 28,640 taxa from field c aigns, published literature, taxonomic monographs, and in idual taxon descriptions. Traits vary in scope from physiological measures of performance (e.g. photosynthetic gas exchange, water-use efficiency) to morphological attributes (e.g. leaf area, seed mass, plant height) which link to aspects of ecological variation. AusTraits contains curated and harmonised in idual- and species-level measurements coupled to, where available, contextual information on site properties and experimental conditions. This article provides information on version 3.0.2 of AusTraits which contains data for 997,808 trait-by-taxon combinations. We envision AusTraits as an ongoing collaborative initiative for easily archiving and sharing trait data, which also provides a template for other national or regional initiatives globally to fill persistent gaps in trait knowledge.
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2017
DOI: 10.1071/BT16188
Abstract: Seasonally dry tropical forests (SDTFs) comprise a globally significant biome for bio ersity and conservation. Geographically, Brazilian SDTFs are primarily located within the country’s semiarid region (the Caatinga domain) in north-eastern Brazil. However, poorly studied and disjunct SDTF enclaves can occur within other regions, inside other Brazilian phytogeographical domains of vegetation such as savannas (i.e. the Cerrado domain) in central Brazil. These enclaves provide an opportunity to examine natural and non-anthropogenic edge effects on such vegetation. In 2007 and 2014, we studied a 120-ha SDTF enclave in the municipality of Januária in northern Minas Gerais, Brazil, to understand its (1) floristic composition and soil correlates, and (2) temporal variations in ersity, structure and dynamics. Three sets of 10 400-m2 plots were used to compare the vegetation at 0 m (edge), 100 m (middle) and 200 m (inner) into the forest. The edge plots were compositionally dissimilar from the interior plots because of soil fertility and soil textural gradients. Paradoxically also, the inner plots exhibited less stable vegetation-dynamic patterns than did both the middle and the edge plots, possibly owing to natural temporal fluctuations in vegetation dynamics. Overall, the SDTF enclave exhibited high ersity and structural complexity, likely because of its geographical setting within a matrix of savanna. These results highlight a conservation priority for further studies on such SDTF enclaves throughout their range.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 11-2012
DOI: 10.1111/J.1469-8137.2012.04359.X
Abstract: Tree species exceeding 70 m in height are rare globally. Giant gymnosperms are concentrated near the Pacific coast of the USA , while the tallest angiosperms are eucalypts ( E ucalyptus spp.) in southern and eastern Australia. Giant eucalypts co‐occur with rain‐forest trees in eastern Australia, creating unique vegetation communities comprising fire‐dependent trees above fire‐intolerant rain‐forest. However, giant eucalypts can also tower over shrubby understoreys (e.g. in Western Australia). The local abundance of giant eucalypts is controlled by interactions between fire activity and landscape setting. Giant eucalypts have features that increase flammability (e.g. oil‐rich foliage and open crowns) relative to other rain‐forest trees but it is debatable if these features are adaptations. Probable drivers of eucalypt gigantism are intense intra‐specific competition following severe fires, and inter‐specific competition among adult trees. However, we suggest that this was made possible by a general capacity of eucalypts for ‘hyper‐emergence’. We argue that, because giant eucalypts occur in rain‐forest climates and share traits with rain‐forest pioneers, they should be regarded as long‐lived rain‐forest pioneers, albeit with a particular dependence on fire for regeneration. These unique ecosystems are of high conservation value, following substantial clearing and logging over 150 yr. Contents Summary 1001 I. Introduction 1001 II. Giant eucalypts in a global context 1002 III. Giant eucalypts – taxonomy and distribution 1004 IV. Growth of giant eucalypts 1006 V. Fire and regeneration of giant eucalypts 1008 VI. Are giant eucalypts different from other rain‐forest trees? 1009 VII. Conclusions 1010 Acknowledgements 1011 References 1011
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 15-09-2011
DOI: 10.1093/JPE/RTW091
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 24-03-2014
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2017
Publisher: Commonwealth Forestry Association
Date: 08-2015
Publisher: Pensoft Publishers
Date: 24-02-2016
DOI: 10.3897/BDJ.4.E7599
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2021
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 10-2016
DOI: 10.1111/AEC.12319
Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Date: 08-11-2021
DOI: 10.1101/2021.11.07.467659
Abstract: Diversity studies on moths in Australia are rare, presenting various shortfalls in knowledge that impedes and understanding of their bio ersity values and their conservation. In particular, the Wet Tropics of Australia deserves attention, given the paucity of systematic moth surveys in the region and its World Heritage Area status. To fill this knowledge gap, we conducted a study to observe moths on 191 nights over a main one-year survey period at an upland rainforest locality, and uploaded all observations on iNaturalist. We also compiled other incidental observations in the general locality by other observers and observations outside the survey period. In total, we document 4,434 observations of moths represented by 1041 distinct moth morphospecies. Of these, 703 are formally named species of moths, 146 to genus and 255 to higher taxonomic designations above genus level. Despite the rather intensive main survey effort, our results suggest that we have yet to reach a plateau in documenting the moth species richness of the locality. Using this study as a model, we show that the iNaturalist platform serves as an effective means to document and digitally curate bio ersity values at a locality, whilst providing complete data transparency and enabling broader community engagement of citizen scientists. We recommend the use of iNaturalist for future moth inventories, and as a resource for follow up meta-analyses of regional moth ersity and distributions.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 12-2018
DOI: 10.1002/ECE3.4601
Publisher: Ilia State University
Date: 23-03-2021
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 24-11-2011
DOI: 10.1002/ECE3.70
Publisher: FapUNIFESP (SciELO)
Date: 04-2022
DOI: 10.1590/1809-4392202103471
Abstract: ABSTRACT Phosphorus (P) cycling is an important yet poorly studied aspect of the macronutrient balance in tropical rainforest ecosystems. As soil P occurs in different organic and inorganic forms (fractions) with varying degrees of lability, we hypothesized that these fractions will vary between soil types, and temporally within soil types. Additionally, we hypothesized a direct influence of leaf litterfall P input on soil total P and soil P fractions. We collected soil and leaf litter s les from three soil types in a central Amazonian lowland rainforest in Brazil over five months, and used a modified Hedleys fractionation method to determine six organic and inorganic soil P fractions, and also total, labile and residual P. Leaf litterfall P concentrations were determined colorimetrically. Soil inorganic and organic P fractions varied between soil types and across months, but soil type and month interactions were mostly non-significant. Some inorganic P fractions (Pi-NaOH) peaked while the organic fractions (Po-NaOH) fell and vice versa. Leaf litterfall production and leaf litterfall P input peaked around two months following the wettest month. Leaf litterfall P input was a significant predictor of Po-NaHCO3, a bioavailable P fraction. Future studies on P cycling in terrestrial ecosystems should examine the roles played by in idual soil P fractions as they cycle asynchronistically and differently across soil types.
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2010
DOI: 10.1071/BT10095
Abstract: The atmospheric pollen loads of Hobart, Tasmania, Australia, were monitored between September 2007 and July 2009. To examine the match of the airborne pollen composition with the flowering duration of their contributing plants, the phenology of native and non-native plants in various habitats near the pollen-trapping site was undertaken between August 2008 and July 2009. The pollen load was found to have a strong seasonal component associated with the start of spring in September. This is incongruent with the peak flowering season of the total taxa in October. In most taxa, atmospheric pollen signatures appeared before flowering was observed in the field. The presence of most pollen types in the atmosphere also exceeded the observed flowering duration of potential pollen-source taxa. Reasons for this may be related to the s ling effort of phenological monitoring, pollen blown in from earlier flowering populations outside of the s ling area, the ability of pollen to be reworked, and the large pollen production of some wind-pollinated taxa. In 2007–2008, 15 pollen types dominated the atmosphere, accounting for 90% of the airborne pollen load. The top six pollen types belonged to Betula, Cupressaceae, Myrtaceae, Salix, Poaceae and Ulmus. Comparatively, the annual pollen load of Hobart is lower than in most other Australian cities however, the pollen signal of Betula is inordinately high. Native plants play a minor role as pollen contributors, despite the proximity of native habitats to the pollen-s ling location. The implications of the aerobiological observations are discussed in relation to public health.
Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Date: 27-04-2019
DOI: 10.1101/620542
Abstract: Knowledge of traditional plant use in rural communities is under threat from urbanization and also land use change. Hence, elucidating region-specific patterns traditional knowledge of habitat resource use is crucial for assisting policy making with regard to nature conservation, human nutrition, and human health. Using original data from northeast Bahia, Brazil, we aim to document the collective knowledge of plant use possessed by artisanal fishermen and women in fishing communities, related to medicinal, construction, technology and ritualistic/religious uses. Data were collected through interviews with and opportunistic guided tours by local specialists to record the local knowledge of plant use and methods of use. Through interviews, 116 species of plants from 104 genera and 47 botanical families were identified along with their local names, plant parts utilized, habitats, and preparation methods, and an additional 26 spp. for which only local names were available. Of these, 72 spp. are used as medicine, 48 spp. as non-conventional edibles, 31 spp. for construction and 11 for religious/mystical purposes. Female informants generally cited more food and medicinal plants than male informants. All interviewees unanimously expressed that the use of plants for medicines and fishing technology has significantly reduced or been superseded by modern materials. The present study demonstrates that the rich collective plant use knowledge of an artisanal fishing community in northeast Brazil. The results of this study serves as a framework for to extend ethnobotanical investigations to other traditional fishing communities in the vicinity, and also to examine more social and demographic factors influencing traditional knowledge related to uses of plants. Finally, the rich tradition of plant use in the region underpins the need to encourage measures to preserve this cultural knowledge and conserve the natural environments that are a source of these plants.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 26-11-2013
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2022
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 11-2019
Abstract: Climate change scenarios predict increasing atmospheric CO2 concentrations ([CO2]), temperatures and droughts in tropical regions. In idually, the effects of these climate factors on plants are well established, whereas experiments on the interactive effects of a combination of factors are rare. Moreover, how these environmental factors will affect tree species along a wet to dry gradient (e.g., along tropical forest–savanna transitions) remains to be investigated. We hypothesized that under the simulated environmental conditions, plant growth, physiological performance and survivorship would vary in a manner consistent with the species’ positions of origin along this gradient. In a glasshouse experiment, we raised seedlings of three Eucalyptus species, each occurring naturally in a wet forest, savanna and forest–savanna ecotone, respectively. We evaluated the effect of drought, elevated temperature (4 °C above ambient glasshouse temperature of 22 °C) and elevated temperature in combination with elevated [CO2] (400 ppm [CO2] above ambient of 400 ppm), on seedling growth, survivorship and physiological responses (photosynthesis, stomatal conductance and water-use efficiency). Elevated temperature under ambient [CO2] had little effect on growth, biomass and plant performance of well-watered seedlings, but hastened mortality in drought-affected seedlings, affecting the forest and ecotone more strongly than the savanna species. In contrast, elevated [CO2] in combination with elevated temperatures delayed the appearance of drought stress symptoms and enhanced survivorship in drought-affected seedlings, with the savanna species surviving the longest, followed by the ecotone and forest species. Elevated [CO2] in combination with elevated temperatures also enhanced growth and biomass and photosynthesis in well-watered seedlings of all species, but modified shoot:root biomass partitioning and stomatal conductance differentially across species. Our study highlights the need for a better understand of the interactive effects of elevated [CO2], temperature and drought on plants and the potential to upscale these insights for understanding biome changes.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 21-11-2019
Publisher: Ilia State University
Date: 2019
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 18-06-2015
Publisher: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date: 28-09-2022
Abstract: Deadwood is a large global carbon store with its store size partially determined by biotic decay. Microbial wood decay rates are known to respond to changing temperature and precipitation. Termites are also important decomposers in the tropics but are less well studied. An understanding of their climate sensitivities is needed to estimate climate change effects on wood carbon pools. Using data from 133 sites spanning six continents, we found that termite wood discovery and consumption were highly sensitive to temperature (with decay increasing .8 times per 10°C increase in temperature)—even more so than microbes. Termite decay effects were greatest in tropical seasonal forests, tropical savannas, and subtropical deserts. With tropicalization (i.e., warming shifts to tropical climates), termite wood decay will likely increase as termites access more of Earth’s surface.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 31-12-2019
DOI: 10.1111/GCB.14904
Abstract: Plant traits—the morphological, anatomical, physiological, biochemical and phenological characteristics of plants—determine how plants respond to environmental factors, affect other trophic levels, and influence ecosystem properties and their benefits and detriments to people. Plant trait data thus represent the basis for a vast area of research spanning from evolutionary biology, community and functional ecology, to bio ersity conservation, ecosystem and landscape management, restoration, biogeography and earth system modelling. Since its foundation in 2007, the TRY database of plant traits has grown continuously. It now provides unprecedented data coverage under an open access data policy and is the main plant trait database used by the research community worldwide. Increasingly, the TRY database also supports new frontiers of trait‐based plant research, including the identification of data gaps and the subsequent mobilization or measurement of new data. To support this development, in this article we evaluate the extent of the trait data compiled in TRY and analyse emerging patterns of data coverage and representativeness. Best species coverage is achieved for categorical traits—almost complete coverage for ‘plant growth form’. However, most traits relevant for ecology and vegetation modelling are characterized by continuous intraspecific variation and trait–environmental relationships. These traits have to be measured on in idual plants in their respective environment. Despite unprecedented data coverage, we observe a humbling lack of completeness and representativeness of these continuous traits in many aspects. We, therefore, conclude that reducing data gaps and biases in the TRY database remains a key challenge and requires a coordinated approach to data mobilization and trait measurements. This can only be achieved in collaboration with other initiatives.
Publisher: FapUNIFESP (SciELO)
Date: 2019
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 04-06-2021
DOI: 10.3390/F12060744
Abstract: Litsea Lam. is an ecological and economic important genus of the “core Lauraceae” group in the Lauraceae. The few studies to date on the comparative chloroplast genomics and phylogenomics of Litsea have been conducted as part of other studies on the Lauraceae. Here, we sequenced the whole chloroplast genome sequence of Litsea auriculata, an endangered tree endemic to eastern China, and compared this with previously published chloroplast genome sequences of 11 other Litsea species. The chloroplast genomes of the 12 Litsea species ranged from 152,132 (L. szemaois) to 154,011 bp (L. garrettii) and exhibited a typical quadripartite structure with conserved genome arrangement and content, with length variations in the inverted repeat regions (IRs). No codon usage preferences were detected within the 30 codons used in the chloroplast genomes, indicating a conserved evolution model for the genus. Ten intergenic spacers (psbE–petL, trnH–psbA, petA–psbJ, ndhF–rpl32, ycf4–cemA, rpl32–trnL, ndhG–ndhI, psbC–trnS, trnE–trnT, and psbM–trnD) and five protein coding genes (ndhD, matK, ccsA, ycf1, and ndhF) were identified as ergence hotspot regions and DNA barcodes of Litsea species. In total, 876 chloroplast microsatellites were located within the 12 chloroplast genomes. Phylogenetic analyses conducted using the 51 additional complete chloroplast genomes of “core Lauraceae” species demonstrated that the 12 Litsea species grouped into four sub-clades within the Laurus-Neolitsea clade, and that Litsea is polyphyletic and closely related to the genera Lindera and Laurus. Our phylogeny strongly supported the monophyly of the following three clades (Laurus–Neolitsea, Cinnamomum–Ocotea, and Machilus–Persea) among the above investigated “core Lauraceae” species. Overall, our study highlighted the taxonomic utility of chloroplast genomes in Litsea, and the genetic markers identified here will facilitate future studies on the evolution, conservation, population genetics, and phylogeography of L. auriculata and other Litsea species.
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 19-10-2023
Abstract: Although closed‐canopy forests are characterized by low‐light availability and slow population dynamics, many are under threat from non‐native, invasive woody species that combine high colonization ability and fast growth potential with high low‐light survival. This ‘superinvader’ phenotype contravenes expected trade‐offs predicted by successional niche theory, posing a challenge to both invasion and forest succession theory. We propose a parsimonious conceptual model based on the whole‐plant light compensation point (WPLCP) that, across a variety of plant strategies and growth forms, can explain greater competitive abilities of forest invaders in the context of both high‐light growth rate and shade tolerance. The model requires only that non‐native species experience relatively fewer carbon costs than native species, enabling resource‐acquisitive species to establish in low‐light conditions. We review evidence for lower carbon costs in invasive species resulting from (1) enemy release, (2) recent environmental changes that favour less stress‐tolerant phenotypes and (3) phylogenetically constrained native floras. We also discuss implications of invader shade tolerance in the context of other life‐history strategies that, combined with canopy disturbances, facilitate their rapid numerical dominance. Synthesis . An invasion framework driven by carbon dynamics suggests renewed focus on whole‐plant carbon costs, including below‐ground respiration and tissue turnover, which are rarely measured in functional studies of forest invaders.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 24-04-2011
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2022
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 28-09-2012
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 28-06-2020
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2023
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 06-2022
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 17-12-2013
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2018
DOI: 10.1071/SB18010
Abstract: The genus Elaeocarpus is the largest genus in the family Elaeocarpaceae, comprising more than 350 species of trees and shrubs with a mainly Indo-Pacific distribution. Approximately 28 species in the genus, including nine species from Australia, are known to possess ruminate endosperm. To provide a basis for understanding fruit development and endosperm rumination in the genus and, therefore, its taxonomic and evolutionary significance, we studied the fruit anatomy of Elaeocarpus ruminatus F.Muell. at different developmental phases (petal-fall to maturity). We found lignin in pericarp and ovary wall tissues in the earliest stages of development. In contrast, endosperm rumination occurs only after fruits have fully expanded, and becomes more pronounced as fruits ripen. Its phylogenetic distribution suggests that ruminate endosperm is a derived, albeit homoplasious character in Elaeocarpus. Comparative studies on related species will be instructive in determining the utility of ruminate endosperm for informing infra-generic taxonomy of the genus, and gaining insight into its adaptive significance.
Location: Australia
No related grants have been discovered for David Tng.