ORCID Profile
0000-0003-2682-6495
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Research Topics
In Research Link Australia (RLA), "Research Topics" refer to ANZSRC FOR and SEO codes. These topics are either sourced from ANZSRC FOR and SEO codes listed in researchers' related grants or generated by a large language model (LLM) based on their publications.
Top 5 Research Topics
ANZSRC Field of Research (FoR)
Community Ecology | Ecology | Freshwater Ecology | Ecosystem Function | Environmental Science and Management | Conservation and Biodiversity | Hydrogeology | Environmental Management |
ANZSRC Socio-Economic Objective (SEO)
Fresh, Ground and Surface Water Flora, Fauna and Biodiversity | Ecosystem Assessment and Management of Coastal and Estuarine Environments | Ecosystem Assessment and Management at Regional or Larger Scales | Ecosystem Adaptation to Climate Change | Physical and Chemical Conditions of Water in Fresh, Ground and Surface Water Environments (excl. Urban and Industrial Use) | Flora, Fauna and Biodiversity at Regional or Larger Scales | Ecosystem Assessment and Management of Mountain and High Country Environments
Related Links
Publications
Does adding wood to agricultural streams enhance biodiversity? An experimental approach
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2007
DOI: 10.1071/MF06198
Abstract: Riparian clearing and the removal of wood from channels have affected many streams in agricultural landscapes. As a result, these streams often have depauperate in-stream wood loads, and therefore decreased habitat complexity and lower levels of in-stream bio ersity. The introduction of wood was investigated as a possible rehabilitation technique for agricultural streams. Wood was re-introduced to eight streams in two separate high-rainfall, intensively grazed regions of Victoria, Australia and the effect on aquatic macroinvertebrate communities was measured. The addition of wood increased overall family richness and the richness of most functional feeding groups occupying edge and benthic habitats within the stream. Wood addition led to less overlap between benthic and edge macroinvertebrate communities, suggesting increased habitat heterogeneity within the stream ecosystem. Of all s led habitats, wood supported the greatest density of families and was colonised by all functional feeding groups. Wood habitats also had the highest overall richness and supported the most taxa that were sensitive to disturbance. These findings suggest that re-introducing wood to agricultural streams is an appropriate rehabilitation technique where those streams are affected by reduced habitat complexity. Additional work is needed to confirm these findings over larger spatial and temporal scales.
A framework for evaluating food-web responses to hydrological manipulations in riverine systems
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2017
Potential for water-resource infrastructure to act as refuge habitat
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2015
Hydrologic landscape regionalisation using deductive classification and random forests
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 14-11-2014
Developing a standardized definition of ecosystem collapse for risk assessment
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 10-01-2018
DOI: 10.1002/FEE.1747
Assessing the impact of drought and forestry on streamflows in south-eastern Australia using a physically based hydrological model
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 17-06-2015
Anthropogenic water bodies as drought refuge for aquatic macroinvertebrates and macrophytes
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 03-2018
DOI: 10.1016/J.SCITOTENV.2017.10.333
Abstract: Ecological research associated with the importance of refuges has tended to focus on natural rather than anthropogenic water bodies. The frequency of disturbances, including drought events, is predicted to increase in many regions worldwide due to human-induced climate change. More frequent disturbance will affect freshwater ecosystems by altering hydrologic regimes, water chemistry, available habitat and assemblage structure. Under this scenario, many aquatic biota are likely to rely on permanent water bodies as refuge, including anthropogenic water bodies. Here, macroinvertebrate and macrophyte assemblages from waste-water treatment and raw-water storages (i.e. untreated potable water) were compared with nearby natural water bodies during autumn and winter 2013. We expected macroinvertebrate and macrophyte assemblages in raw-water storages to be representative of natural water bodies, while waste-water treatment storages would not, due to degraded water quality. However, water quality in natural water bodies differed from raw-water storages but was similar to waste-water treatment storages. Macroinvertebrate patterns matched those of water quality, with no differences occurring between natural water bodies and waste-water treatment storages, but assemblages in raw-water storages differed from the other two water bodies. Unexpectedly, differences associated with raw-water storages were attributable to low abundances of several taxa. Macrophyte assemblages in raw-water storages were representative of natural water bodies, but were less erse and abundant in, or absent from, waste-water treatment storages. No clear correlations existed between any habitat variables and macroinvertebrate assemblages but a significant correlation between macrophyte assemblages and habitat characteristics existed. Thus, there were similarities in both water quality and macroinvertebrate assemblages between natural water bodies and waste-water treatment storages, and similarities in macrophyte assemblages between raw-water storages and natural water bodies. These similarities illustrate that anthropogenic water storages support representative populations of some aquatic biota across the landscape, and thus, may provide important refuge following disturbance where dispersal capabilities allow.
Characteristics and consequences of a disease outbreak in aquatic insects
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 10-04-2021
DOI: 10.1111/FWB.13715
Abstract: Disease can be a powerful driver of population and community dynamics, as well as evolutionary processes. Disease is also emerging at increasing rates, resulting in massive impacts on populations, communities, and ecosystems. However, assessing these impacts requires foundational knowledge of disease agents and hosts, which is often lacking, particularly in aquatic insects. We describe a recent disease outbreak in caddisflies, suggesting potential consequences for population and community dynamics of the host. We use a series of complementary studies to develop a cohesive foundation of information about this disease, including identification using genomic methods, observational prevalence studies, laboratory experiments to establish transmissibility and fitness consequences, and laboratory and field investigations to infer transmission mechanisms. We identified the infection as being caused by the oomycete Saprolegnia —the first time this parasite has been noted in insect eggs. Prevalence surveys found high prevalence (up to 36%) with variation across space, time, and host species. We demonstrated increasing egg mortality with increasing infection within an egg mass (every 10% increase in infection rate doubles odds of mortality), thereby confirming disease. We established transmissibility and show that transmission occurs through both direct contact with infected egg masses and from background sources, which probably interact to create complex patterns of disease. Taken together, our findings show that conditions necessary for population and community consequences are present. Specifically, increased mortality rates almost certainly occurred during the outbreak, yielding lower larval numbers and potentially altering community interactions. Transmission by contact between egg masses combined with observed species‐specific prevalence suggest shifts in the relative performance of different species because of interactions between host and parasite life histories. Outside extreme ex les such as chytrid fungus, disease has traditionally received less interest than resource competition or predation in community ecology, although disease ecology is advancing rapidly. One major hurdle is a lack of foundational knowledge characterising disease processes in natural communities, particularly in aquatic insects. Our findings highlight the importance of investigating diseases in insect eggs and provide the foundation for further investigations of how these processes play out at the population and community scale.
Restructuring of littoral fish assemblages after drought differs in two lakes at the terminus of a heavily regulated river
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 20-02-2018
DOI: 10.1002/RRA.3252
Modelling food-web mediated effects of hydrological variability and environmental flows
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2017
Complex movement patterns by foraging loggerhead sea turtles outside the breeding season identified using Argos‐linked Fastloc‐Global Positioning System
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 02-2018
DOI: 10.1111/MAEC.12489
Predicting the likely response of data-poor ecosystems to climate change using space-for-time substitution across domains
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 14-06-2014
DOI: 10.1111/GCB.12634
Large versus small wood in streams: the effect of wood dimension on macroinvertebrate communities
Publisher: Schweizerbart
Date: 05-2009
Selecting and applying indicators of ecosystem collapse for risk assessments
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 04-07-2018
DOI: 10.1111/COBI.13107
Abstract: Ongoing ecosystem degradation and transformation are major threats to bio ersity. Measuring ecosystem change toward collapse relies on monitoring indicators that quantify key ecological processes. Yet little guidance is available on selection and use of indicators for ecosystem risk assessment. We reviewed indicator use in ecological studies of ecosystem collapse in marine pelagic and temperate forest ecosystems. We examined indicator-selection methods, indicator types (geographic distribution, abiotic, biotic), methods of assessing multiple indicators, and temporal quality of time series. We compared how these factors were applied in the ecological studies with how they were applied in risk assessments by using the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List of Ecosystems (RLE), for which indicators are used to estimate risk of ecosystem collapse. Ecological studies and RLE assessments rarely reported how indicators were selected, particularly in terrestrial ecosystems. Few ecological studies and RLE assessments quantified ecosystem change based on all 3 indicator types, and indicators types used differed between marine and terrestrial ecosystems. Several studies used indices or multivariate analyses to assess multiple indicators simultaneously, but RLE assessments did not because as RLE guidelines advise against them. Most studies and RLE assessments used time-series data that spanned at least 30 years, which increases the probability of reliably detecting change. Limited use of indicator-selection protocols and infrequent use of all 3 indicator types may h er accurate detection of change. To improve the value of risk assessments for informing policy and management, we recommend using explicit protocols, including conceptual models, to identify and select indicators a range of indicators spanning distributional, abiotic, and biotic features indices and multivariate analyses with extreme care until guidelines are developed time series with sufficient data to increase ability to accurately diagnose directional change data from multiple sources to support assessments and explicitly reporting steps in the assessment process.
Reintroducing wood to streams in agricultural landscapes: changes in velocity profile, stage and erosion rates
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 09-05-2008
DOI: 10.1002/RRA.1158
Scientific foundations for an IUCN Red List of Ecosystems
Publisher: Public Library of Science (PLoS)
Date: 08-05-2013
Deriving site-specific water quality criteria for ammonia from national versus international toxicity data
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 04-2019
DOI: 10.1016/J.ECOENV.2018.12.078
Abstract: A key question to be asked when developing regional water quality criteria with scarce toxicity data is whether such data need to be locally derived. To address this, ammonia toxicity data from local aquatic species in the Liao River were compared against data from species native and non-native to China, based on comparisons of the overall trends of species sensitivity distributions and derived water quality criteria. Liao River data were acquired by acute and chronic tests using five local freshwater invertebrate species, and then compiled alongside published data from Chinese national guidelines and international literature. Models of best fit using three species sensitivity distribution approaches (log-logistic, log-normal, and Burr III) did not vary markedly (r
Identifying multiple factors limiting long-term success in environmental watering
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 2020
DOI: 10.1071/MF18461
Abstract: Environmental watering is frequently used to achieve specific ecological objectives, such as triggering spawning or seed germination. These short-term objectives are often met, but longer-term objectives, such as population growth, may not be, especially where multiple hydrological and non-hydrological factors influence success. We propose a framework to identify these factors in space and time. Our framework steps users through identifying possible inhibiting (strictures) and supporting (promoters) factors, and placing these factors in their spatial and temporal context. This allows users to identify potential limiting factors that may require additional intervention, or render the original watering action unsustainable. We illustrate the framework with ex les of a floodplain tree (black box, Eucalyptus largiflorens), colonial nesting waterbird (royal spoonbill, Platalea regia) and large-bodied migratory fish (golden perch, Macquaria ambigua). The framework explores strictures and promoters for major life-history stages, emphasising the need to support and protect all stages if objectives include population maintenance or growth. In this way, the framework can document existing mental models and can be used as the basis of a risk portfolio, a prioritisation tool or future quantitative models. Thus, the framework enables in idual management actions to be better grounded in a broader context, increasing the likelihood of achieving long-term ecological objectives.
Understanding the sources of uncertainty to reduce the risks of undesirable outcomes in large-scale freshwater ecosystem restoration projects: An example from the Murray-Darling Basin, Australia
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2013
The use of fatty acids to identify food sources of secondary consumers in wetland mesocosms
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 2020
Population genetic structure of the Australian caddisfly Lectrides varians Mosely (Trichoptera: Leptoceridae) and the identification of cryptic species in south-eastern Australia
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 19-10-2014
Using multiple lines of evidence to assess the risk of ecosystem collapse
Publisher: The Royal Society
Date: 20-09-2017
Abstract: Effective ecosystem risk assessment relies on a conceptual understanding of ecosystem dynamics and the synthesis of multiple lines of evidence. Risk assessment protocols and ecosystem models integrate limited observational data with threat scenarios, making them valuable tools for monitoring ecosystem status and diagnosing key mechanisms of decline to be addressed by management. We applied the IUCN Red List of Ecosystems criteria to quantify the risk of collapse of the Meso-American Reef, a unique ecosystem containing the second longest barrier reef in the world. We collated a wide array of empirical data (field and remotely sensed), and used a stochastic ecosystem model to backcast past ecosystem dynamics, as well as forecast future ecosystem dynamics under 11 scenarios of threat. The ecosystem is at high risk from mass bleaching in the coming decades, with compounding effects of ocean acidification, hurricanes, pollution and fishing. The overall status of the ecosystem is Critically Endangered (plausibly Vulnerable to Critically Endangered), with notable differences among Red List criteria and data types in detecting the most severe symptoms of risk. Our case study provides a template for assessing risks to coral reefs and for further application of ecosystem models in risk assessment.
Determining target loads of large and small wood for stream rehabilitation in high-rainfall agricultural regions of Victoria, Australia
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2006
Soil organic carbon variability in Australian temperate freshwater wetlands
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 23-10-2018
DOI: 10.1002/LNO.10735
Related Organisations
No related organisations have been discovered for Rebecca Lester.
Related Funding Activities
Discovery Projects - Grant ID: DP160102262
Start Date: 02-2016
End Date: 02-2020
Amount: $462,300.00
Funder: Australian Research Council
View Funded ActivityDiscovery Projects - Grant ID: DP170101908
Start Date: 06-2017
End Date: 12-2020
Amount: $439,500.00
Funder: Australian Research Council
View Funded ActivityDiscovery Projects - Grant ID: DP220102184
Start Date: 10-2022
End Date: 10-2025
Amount: $461,796.00
Funder: Australian Research Council
View Funded ActivityLinkage Projects - Grant ID: LP130100435
Start Date: 04-2014
End Date: 12-2017
Amount: $389,065.00
Funder: Australian Research Council
View Funded ActivityLinkage Projects - Grant ID: LP170101143
Start Date: 02-2019
End Date: 02-2024
Amount: $416,000.00
Funder: Australian Research Council
View Funded Activity