Western Spiny-tailed Gecko (Strophurus strophurus) in Australia

Conservation zone planning

The conservation zone planning research focuses on spatial planning to protect biodiversity and ecosystems. It develops data-driven strategies to balance conservation with land-use demands, aiding policymakers and land managers in creating sustainable, science-based environmental protection plans.

About

The discovery and documenting of species, particularly the detection of cryptic species and the use of phylogenetic diversity to identify stable habitat refugia and biodiversity hotspots, will provide valuable information for decision-makers who need to compare and conserve biodiversity across space and time.

For information on Australia's biodiversity policies see the Department of the Environment and Energy:

Projects

The Ignition Grant Round 3 project aims to enhance genomic resources for Helicoverpa species, focusing on pest and non-pest comparisons. By using advanced sequencing techniques on museum specimens, the study seeks to uncover evolutionary traits, inform conservation strategies, and aid in biosecurity planning for these agricultural pests.

The Ignition Grant Round 2 aimed to unite palaeoecology researchers for a workshop at ANU’s Kioloa Coastal Campus in November 2013. The focus was on data collation and analysis for a draft paper, exploring palaeoecological impacts on vegetation and defaunation in Australia and the Asia-Pacific.

This project investigates the taxonomy and genetic diversity of seabird ticks affecting Little Blue Penguins and Shearwaters in Australia and New Zealand. It utilises next-generation sequencing to address taxonomic issues, assess parasite dispersal, and inform conservation efforts, particularly under climate change influences.

Rhytiphora, Australia's largest genus of longhorn beetles, is highly diverse due to late arrival and adaptation to new plant communities. Researchers aim to trial Molecular Inversion Probes on old specimens to study Rhytiphora's phylogenetics, comparing this method with Whole Genome Shotgun sequencing for effectiveness.

Researchers from ANU and CSIRO aimed to identify evolutionary refugia in northern Australia using spatial analysis and genomics. Their study focused on vulnerable regions like the Mt Isa Inlier. The project led to discovering two new gecko species and initiated an honours project.

The Ignition Grant Round 7 project, led by Elle Bowd, focuses on characterising soil communities in Victorian Mountain Ash forests using DNA and RNA metabarcoding. It examines the impact of fire and logging on soil seed-banks and fungi, contributing to long-term biodiversity and conservation research.

News

We've mapped the hotspots of eucalypt diversity and our study shows that by 2085 the hotspots will be in different places. We need to plan now to conserve those future hotspots.

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A new program to help address Australia’s high mammal extinction rates has just been announced.

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CBA researchers made headlines recently when they discovered at least two new species of gecko in the Cobbold Gorge tourist park northwest of Townsville.

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Amid the questioning of government support for remote Aboriginal communities and what Prime Minister Tony Abbott called the “lifestyle choices” of those who

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The first Atlas of Living Australia (ALA) record of the near-threatened Leichhardt’s Grasshopper (Petasida ephippigera) has been entered for Arnhem Land.

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Events

Fred Allendorf
Tuesday, 7 Oct 2025, 3 - 4pm

Professor Fred Allendorf from the University of Montana will discuss the relationship between effective population size and allelic variation and its implications for species conservation status.

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Conservation and the genomics of populations
Wednesday, 8 Oct 2025, 9:30am - Friday, 10 Oct 2025, 4:30pm

This 3-day workshop presented by Fred Allendorf and other guest speakers will provide a comprehensive overview of the essential background, concepts, and tools required to understand how genetics and genomics can be used for conservation and management.

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