Hawkesbury Institute for the Environment

Recent Research Projects within HIE include:

The right seed in the right place

Dr Paul Rymer will work with Greening Australia on selection of the best mixes of seed for restoring ecosystems in western Sydney and beyond. The current challenge is to find suitable mixes of seed that maintain genetic diversity and suitability for specific ecosystems without becoming inbred and therefore genetically limited.

Research project title: Seed production for restoration (PDF, 100.6 KB) (opens in a new window)

Cotton adapting to climate

Associate Professor Brajesh Singh, Prof David Tissue and Professor Ian Anderson, together with Dr Michael Braunack and Dr Michael Bange of CSIRO Plant Industry, have received funding from the Cotton Research & Development Corporation to investigate the ability of the cotton industry to adapt under extreme weather conditions and climate change.

Research project title: Cotton Industry adaptation to extreme weather and climate change (PDF, 94.6 KB) (opens in a new window)

Energetics of anti-predator behaviour

Dr Christopher Turbill will be investigating the energetic consequences of anti-predator behaviour in small prey mammals. This research is being supported by The Hermon Slade Foundation (opens in a new window). Also participating in this project is Professor Stephan Blanc from the Department of Ecology, Physiology and Ethology, University of Strasbourg, France.

Research project title: Energetic consequences of anti-predator behaviour in small mammal prey (PDF, 81.28 KB) (opens in a new window)

Woodland response to elevated CO₂

Professor David Ellsworth and Professor David Tissue, in association with Professor Fernando Valladares of the Spanish Scientific Council (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas) are investigating the response of Australian woodland trees to rising atmospheric CO₂. This research is being supported by an Australian Research Council Discovery Project grant.

Research project title: Woodland response to elevated CO₂ in FACE: Does phosphorus limit the sink for C? (PDF, 165.97 KB) (opens in a new window)

Forest responses to climate change

Professor David Ellsworth and Professor David Tissue, in association with Dr Anthony O’Grady and Dr Tim McVicar of CSIRO are investigating the water balance of a native forest exposed to elevated atmospheric CO₂. This research is being supported by the CSIRO Flagship - Water for a Healthy Country.

Research project title: What will be the hydrological consequences of elevated CO₂? An experimental test of the impacts of elevated CO₂ on evapotranspiration in a mature Australian Woodland (PDF, 85.46 KB) (opens in a new window)

Soil security with nodulation of pulse crops

Dr Jeff Powell will seek to understand the interactions between different nitrogen-fixing bacteria strains in pulse crops to improve yields. This project is funded by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry and the Grains Research and Development Corporation through the 2012 Science and Innovation Awards for Young People in Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry.

Research project title: A trait-based approach for understanding the processes limiting effective nodulation of pulse crops (PDF, 96.89 KB) (opens in a new window)

The image to the right depicts: (A) Soybean root system with nodules of Bradyrhizobium japonicum. (Image courtesy of Pedro Antunes.) (B, C) Electron micrographs of alfalfa nodule interior, showing rhizobial bacteroids. (Images courtesy of Joe Muldoon.)

The Pace of Life

Dr Christopher Turbill has been awarded a prestigious Australian Research Council Discovery Early Career Researcher Award to support his research into the physiological basis of life-history trade-offs that cause some individuals or species to age faster than others 

Research project title: Oxidative stress as a physiological constraint on the pace of life histories (PDF, 77.24 KB) (opens in a new window)

Western Sydney Insect Infestation

Dr Markus Riegler, together with Blacktown City Council have been awarded a UWS Research Partnership grant to identify the key characteristics of the current psyllid infestation in the endangered remnant Cumberland Plain Woodlands.

Research project title: Assessing the distribution and population dynamics of the lace lerp infestation in the endangered Cumberland Plain Woodlands in Western Sydney (PDF, 80.07 KB) (opens in a new window)

Hungry Insects

Dr Markus Riegler and Professor David Ellsworth have been awarded an Australian Research Council Discovery Project Grant to test the predicted responses of individual insect species and communities in eucalypt forests against realistic climate change scenarios.

Research project title: Insect herbivore and plant responses in eucalypt forests under climate change at physiological, species and community scales (PDF, 88.86 KB) (opens in a new window)

Plant and fungus relationships

Professor John Cairney and Professor Ian Anderson have been awarded an Australian Research Council Discovery Projects grant to investigate the extent to which basidiomycetes fungi form ericoid mycorrhizal associations with Ericaceae plants in Australian habitats.

Research project title: Plant : fungal symbioses in Australian forests - new perspectives using laser microdissection (PDF, 83.52 KB) (opens in a new window)

Fire affects on tree water use

Professor David Tissue is examining the impact of forest fire on water use by trees and groundwater recharge within a highland catchment. This research is an Australian Research Council Linkage project supported by the Australian Capital Territory’s water utility, ACTEW Corporation.

Research project title: Testing climatic, physiological and hydrological assumptions underpinning water yield from montane forests (PDF, 92.26 KB) (opens in a new window)

 Small things make a big difference

Professor Ian Anderson is investigating how the diversity and activity of forest soil microbes is affected by climate change, through a Life Sciences Research Award from the NSW Office for Science and Medical Research.

Research project title: Climate change impacts on carbon sequestration in Australian forests: the role of soil microbial diversity (PDF, 66.75 KB) (opens in a new window)