Zoology & Ecology
Saul Chemonges
- Adjunct Associate Professor
- saul.chemonges@jcu.edu.au
Daniel Montesinos Torres
- Senior Research Fellow
- daniel.montesinos@jcu.edu.au
Claire Gely
- Lecturer, Zoology and Ecology
- claire.gely@jcu.edu.au
Ben Hirsch
- Adjunct Senior Lecturer
- ben.hirsch@jcu.edu.au
Stephen Williams
- Adjunct Professor
- stephen.williams@jcu.edu.au
Myles Menz
- Senior Lecturer, Zoology and Ecology
- myles.menz@jcu.edu.au
Martijn van de Pol
- Associate Professor, Mathematical Modelling
- martijn.vandepol@jcu.edu.au
Slade Allen-Ankins
- Research Fellow
- slade.allenankins@jcu.edu.au
Noel Preece
- Adjunct Associate Professor
- noel.preece@jcu.edu.au
Conrad Hoskin
- Professor
- conrad.hoskin@jcu.edu.au
Conservation genomics and population status of the endangered Mahogany Gliders (Petaurus gracilis) (Old ID 27672)
Habitat loss and fragmentation have been threatening population connectivity and genetic diversity of Mahogany Gliders, a rare and endangered gliding possum endemic to the Australian Wet Tropics. Substantial habitat loss and fragmentation have brought concerns to the status of remnant populations. I will use distribution models to refine the distribution and guide camera trapping to find unknown populations. Connectivity between populations will be assessed using genomics, which also allows estimations of population structure and effective population size. Knowledge of distribution and genetics will be used to choose populations for long-term monitoring, and to guide conservation actions for Mahogany Gliders recovery.
Distribution, ecology and conservation of the Magnificent Broodfrog in the mountains of north Queensland (Old ID 27776)
This project aims to resolve the knowledge gaps surrounding the ecology and key threatening processes to the Magnificent Broodfrog, Pseudophryne covacevichae (MBF). We will do this by determining appropriate survey methods, investigating aspects of breeding behaviour and the associated climatic conditions; resolving the fine-scale distribution, determining connectivity among the known populations, and determining genetic diversity within populations. This project will also include an assessment of the genetic relatedness between MBFs and three isolated populations of the Great Brown Broodfrog, P. major in the Bowen and White Mountains regions. The genetic results will contribute to management actions for populations of the MBF and will shed light on the taxonomic status of these northern populations of P. major and, in turn, whether the MBF is a well-supported species.
The role of drought-stress and insect attack on rainforest plant health (Old ID 26337)
This project aims to examine the vulnerability of tropical plants to drought and insect attack in a large-scale field experiment. We will pioneer a new research approach that focuses on the causes and stages of decline in plant health prior to death, in order to identify the characteristics of plant species that make them more susceptible to drought and insect attack. Expected outcomes of this project include an improved capacity to predict the function and composition of future forests. This project will provide significant benefits to communities concerned with the direct and indirect effects of droughts in protected areas, forestry reserves and agriculture.
Conservation of the Spotted‐tailed Quoll across the Wet Tropics mountaintops (Old ID 23254)
The northern subspecies of Spotted‐tailed Quoll (Dasyurus maculatus gracilis) is genetically divergent, highly isolated, and restricted to high elevation rainforest of the Wet Tropics. It is listed as Endangered at both the Federal (EPBC) and State (NCA) level. Dasyurus m. gracilis has declined substantially due to a number of possible threats and only appears to survive in five small, disjunct areas across the central and northern Wet Tropics mountains. For effective management, it is vital that we understand the decline and genetic structuring of Spotted‐tailed Quoll populations across the Wet Tropics. This project aims to: 1) Use distribution modelling to identify areas of quoll loss/persistence and assess possible reasons for the decline, in order to identify threats and key areas for conservation management, and 2) Use genomics to determine genetic structuring between subpopulations, in order to understand isolation and connectivity between populations and direct conservation actions
The future of urban roosts of the Spectacled Flying-fox in North Queensland (Old ID 27817)
In partnership with Cairns Council and Bat & Tree Society, I have collected data on bat temperatures and microclimate at 20 urban roosts, including the two remnant forests. I have undertaken field surveys of vegetation structure, but these methods may not accurately estimate the top down perspective of canopy organisms. Hence, the next step is to estimate the three dimensional space of bat roosts. Using terrestrial laser scanning (TLS), I will quantify the volume of vegetation at different heights and correlate with microclimate conditions in order to rank the thermal insulation of roost sites to protect bats during heatwaves.
Can species interactions drive rapid niche evolution? (Old ID 23572)
Climate change can alter the distribution of species and cause novel interactions. This project will test whether such interactions can actually drive adaptation to the changing environment. Two Australian fruitfly species will be lab-reared separately and together along a thermal resource gradient. Estimates of each species' niche will be obtained. Using experimental evolution, resource space will then be manipulated to create competition and test whether either species' niche will evolve into new space. A shift of either species beyond its former niche limits would provide evidence of the potential for evolutionary rescue via rapid adaptation to changing environmental conditions.
Can species interactions drive rapid niche evolution? (Old ID 23572)
Climate change can alter the distribution of species and cause novel interactions. This project will test whether such interactions can actually drive adaptation to the changing environment. Two Australian fruitfly species will be lab-reared separately and together along a thermal resource gradient. Estimates of each species' niche will be obtained. Using experimental evolution, resource space will then be manipulated to create competition and test whether either species' niche will evolve into new space. A shift of either species beyond its former niche limits would provide evidence of the potential for evolutionary rescue via rapid adaptation to changing environmental conditions.
Understanding population growth time lags in invasive species: Chital deer as a model system. (Old ID 26559)
Lags in population growth of introduced species are common, but poorly understood. Chital deer (Axis axis) are an invasive species introduced to Australia over 130 years ago, but their numbers have only increased dramatically in the past 30-40 years. We will use data collected from wild animals, landholder surveys, and computer simulation models to clarify causes of sudden population expansion in more detail. Understanding lags will allow us to understand their causes, and better control populations of invasive species. By predicting drivers of rapid population growth, we can better mitigate the associated economic and environmental costs of invasive species.
Predicting genetic exchange between species under climate change (Old ID 27104)
This project aims to resolve the factors that lead to the mixing of species’ gene pools, with a focus on whether climate change will increase such mixing, possibly leading to extinction by genetic swamping. The significance is that the project would improve our understanding of speciation and species’ vulnerability to rapid climate change through genetic mixing; a largely overlooked process. Key outcomes would be to generate new knowledge of a fundamental evolutionary process and extend the toolbox of biodiversity managers facing rapid environmental change. The project would benefit Australia by highlighting our unique biodiversity and scientific capability, and by training early career researchers in advanced evolutionary biology.
The interaction of yellow crazy ants (Anoplolepsis gracilipes) with mammals of the Wet Tropics (Old ID 24871)
Yellow crazy ants arrived in Cairns in 2001 and have spread to other locations in the Wet Tropics. These ants have the potential to be environmentally destructive and while studies have been conducted on the effects of ants on reptiles, amphibians and invertebrates, to date no significant study has been made on the effects of these ants on mammals. Through trapping surveys and behavioural testing I aim to provide insight into these effects and gain understanding of the broader ecological impacts of yellow crazy ants in the Wet Tropics.
Complex growth rate evolution in a latitudinally widespread species
- 2004
- Wiley-Blackwell
- Researchers:Lin Schwarzkopf
Shade acclimation of rainforest leaves to colonization by lichens
- 2002
- Wiley-Blackwell
- Researchers:Betsy Jackes
Master of them all: performance specialization does not result in trade-offs in tropical lizards
- 2007
- Evolutionary Ecology
- Researchers:Lin Schwarzkopf
Does total reproductive effort evolve independently of offspring size?
- 2001
- Wiley-Blackwell
- Researchers:Lin Schwarzkopf
Nomadic movement in tropical toads
- 2002
- Wiley-Blackwell
- Researchers:Lin Schwarzkopf
Start Date:
01 Jan 1986
Start Date:
01 Jan 1984
End Date:
01 Jan 2007
End Date:
01 Jan 2002
End Date:
01 Jan 1999
Title:
ERC Expert Panel
Start Date:
01 Jan 2020
End Date:
01 Jan 2021
Start Date:
01 Jan 2011
End Date:
01 Jan 2019
Start Date:
01 Jan 2022
Start Date:
01 Jan 2018
Start Date:
01 Jan 2010