Conservation prioritization can resolve the flagship species conundrum.
By: McGowan, Jennifer, Linda J. Beaumont, Robert J. Smith, Alienor LM Chauvenet, Robert Harcourt, Scott C. Atkinson, John C. Mittermeier et al. Nature Communications 11, no. 1 (2020): 1-7. | Find with Google Scholar »
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Dear all,
We are in a rapidly evolving situation with the COVID-19 virus. Please watch out for MQ’s announcements, particularly in relation to travel and students on campus. You should contact myself or the admin team if you have any questions. There will be a virtual Town Hall meeting at 11.55am on Monday via this link
Next week should be a busy week being Gender Equity week on campus, with lots of interesting talks and events (see the calendar below!). We will also have student welcome events – please come along to make our new undergrads and postgrads welcome.
For those who missed the department meeting this week, the slides are available here.
cheers
Michelle
Save the Date
Next week 9th – 13th March
7th – 12th Mar: Gender Equity Week on campus, register for events here!
9th – 13th Mar: Careers Week on campus
Wed 11th Mar: Department Seminar; 1pm – 2pm Biology Tearoom E8A 280
Wed 11th Mar: Undergraduate Student Welcome BBQ; 12pm-1pm Biology Courtyard
Wed 11th Mar: Women in Science: 100 Inspirational Lives; 4-5pm; Level 8 Conference Room, 12 Wally’s Walk
Thu 12th Mar: R-Users Group (RUG) Help Session; 2pm – 4pm Macquarie University Library – training room 4.03 level 4
Fri 13th Mar: FSE International Student Welcome; 12pm -1pm 12WW Atrium
Fri 13th Mar: Board Games Social; 3pm – 4pm Biology Tearoom E8A 280
Future Events
Thur 26th Mar: FSE Student Awards Night
Fri 27th Mar: Board Games Social; 3pm – 4pm Biology Tearoom E8A 280
Fri 3 April: Exchange Fair 2020 18 Wally’s Walk
Wed 8 April: The NSW Science and Research Breakfast Seminar Series; 7.30am – 9am Parliament House NSW
Wed 22nd Apr: Graduation Ceremony; 6-8pm
Tues 9th – Thurs 11th June: HDR Conference; three days; 14SCO T3 and T4 Theaters
Weekly Events
Wed: Department seminars; 1-2pm; Biology tearoom. Schedule ON OUR WEBPAGE HERE
Wed: Shut up and Write Sessions; 11.00am – 12.00pm; 6WW(E8C)-212 or 14EAR(E8A)-360A.
Fri: Writing Workshops with Prof Ken Cheng – to support HDRs and ECRs with scientific writing; 2 – 4pm; Ken’s office at 205b Culloden Road, G12.
General News and Announcements
LEU Survey Excellence
Congratulations to the following convenors scoring a >4 average in LEU surveys for S2 2019!
BIOL606 Brian Atwell
BIOL347 Ian Wright
BIOL334 Adam Stow
BIOL247 Jane Al Kouba
BIOL242 Kath Korbel
This week’s Biological Sciences Seminar – Date/Time: Wednesday, 11th March; 1pm – 2pm. Speaker: Dr Emile Ens Macquarie University. Title: Working to better understand and manage Australia’s biocultural assets through collaborative cross-cultural ecology. Venue: Biology Tea Room. More information on this and all department seminars click here!
HELP SCIENCE AT MASSEY UNIVERSITY
Our support is needed for Sciences at Massey University’s Albany campus.
On Monday the University has released a discussion document suggesting to stop teaching the Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees at the Albany campus. Currently there are about 650 undergraduate students and 150 postgraduate students on campus and about 70 academic staff whose jobs are on the line.
On Monday the University has released a discussion document suggesting to stop teaching the Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees at the Albany campus. Currently there are about 650 undergraduate students and 150 postgraduate students on campus and about 70 academic staff whose jobs are on the line.
You can also leave a comment and feel free to share with others.
Plant of the Week
This week we have – Hypoestes phyllostachya – the Polka Dot Plant
Many variegated indoor plants have their origins in tropical and temperate rainforests of the world. Leaf variegation can be from a number of factors, but in Polka Dot Plants the dots result from a lack of chlorophyll. You would wonder why, as the lack of chlorophyll would reduce their photosynthetic capacity. However, plants are quite remarkable, and the variegated leaves of some species mimic damage from herbivory, and in the process deter predators from even more predation.
OPPORTUNITIES
Hort Innovation Graduate Scholarship
Hort Innovation is advertising their Internship Program that provides a generous $8000 scholarship, co-investment in 1st year salary, and 5-day leadership training program to “1) Increase graduate interest in careers across the Australian horticulture sector, and 2) Build a new pool of industry leaders and create networks of young professionals to drive further innovation across the sector.”. More info and application is here: https://www.gradlinkprogram.com.au/hort-innovation-internship-program/
Calling all optimistic conservation researchers!
Get your good news story out by giving a 3 minute talk at our upcoming Earth Optimism Australia event at Taronga Zoo on April 22nd. Please contact Rachael Gallagher who is on the local organising committee with questions if you need.
We are looking for positive stories of change that will engage an audience of age 12+. Talks must be 3 minutes in length and can be accompanied with a maximum of ONE visual aid (e.g. a PowerPoint slide or photo).
How to get involved:
This session will have 8-9 speakers and we aim to represent a diversity of backgrounds (e.g. types of organizations, solutions, personal backgrounds, demographics). We will select final speakers on the basis of ensuring we have a diverse and engaging panel for the audience.
To be considered for inclusion in the session please send your name, short bio and a summary of your success story along with a short (~30 second) teaser video clip to earthoptimism@scboceania.org by March 14th. All successful applicants will be notified by March 24th so that they can prepare their full talk for the April 22nd event.
More information can be found at 3MT Earth Optimism call for nominations.
Hansjorg Eichler Research Grant
The next round of the ASBS Hansjörg Eichler Scientific Research Fund applications are due on 14 Mar 2020. This is a generous scheme providing up to $5000 for research projects. All current ASBS members are welcome to apply, with preference given to students, recent graduates, newly-established botanists and non-salaried researchers. Guidelines, essential criteria and application forms are available here: http://www.asbs.org.au/asbs/hesrfund/index.html
Winston Churchill Trust is offering funding to do research overseas
See the Churchill Trust website to apply. Closes 30 April
Note: NOT suitable for HDR candidates
Aurora Internship Program in Indigenous-sector organisations
Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander and non-Indigenous students and graduates are able to apply for 4-6 week internships working with organisations across Australia with an indigenous focus.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students and graduates are also eligible to apply for scholarships. Applications close Friday 27 March 2020
See the website for more information
2020 Eureka Prizes program announced
The Australian Museum Eureka Prizes are back – and in 2020 we’re marking 30 years of celebrating outstanding scientific achievement. This year, there are 17 prizes on offer across the categories of Research & Innovation, Leadership, Science Engagement and School Science.
Prizes cover a broad spectrum of scientific disciplines, aiming to recognise the work of scientists, researchers and science communicators at all career stages. There’s a prize pool of $170,000 to be shared between winners, and it’s free to enter!
Entries open Wednesday 4 March
Taronga Conservation Society Australia are excited to announce the HATCH: Taronga Accelerator Program!
Through this program Taronga aims to help drive innovative solutions to some of the world’s most pressing conservation and environmental challenges. If you have a brilliant idea or product that you think will be the next game changer for the planet, or know someone who does, Taronga wants to hear from you.
The HATCH program will provide participants with:
- The opportunity to receive up to $50,000 in funding at the end of the Accelerator program
- $2,000 seed funding for all participating teams
- The opportunity to develop their brilliant idea into a not for profit or social enterprise venture
- Access to top mentors and subject matter experts, including Taronga’s experts in conservation, science, education and community engagement
- A peer group of like-minded innovators and thought leaders
For more information visit the HATCH webpage, sign up to the mailing list to receive program updates, and join the program community on LinkedIn. If you have any questions you can contact the HATCH team at hatch@zoo.nsw.gov.au.
Applications are now open and will close on 24 March 2020. Now’s the time to start thinking about your brilliant idea for the planet!
SEMINARS AND WORKSHOPS
Shut Up and Write Sessions – every Wednesday 11am. It’s pretty simple, we shut up… and we write. Using the pomodoro technique we’ll meet at 11am to write, stop 25 minutes in for a 10 min break, then settle down again for another 25 minutes of writing. You’ll be amazed how productive you can be. More details on the concept here: https://thesiswhisperer.com/shut-up-and-write/
Room will be either 6WW(E8C)-212 or 14EAR(E8A)-360A, email <lizzy.lowe@mq.edu.au> to confirm or with any questions.
All welcome!
R-Users Group (RUG) Help Session
Do you have a problem with data analysis? You might want to give R a go which is a fantastic analytical and plotting tool. For all your R-related queries, drop by the ‘Ask An R Geek for Help’ (aaRgh) session where you can get one-on-one assistance. Or just come by, have some snacks, and work on your code. We welcome R users with any level of experience. If you’re new to R, then it’s a great place to develop a support network – we all learned R at some point, and we know how frustrating it can be sometimes!
Date: Thursday 12 March 2020. Time: 2 PM to 4 PM. Venue: Macquarie University Library – training room 4.03 on level 4.
If you’d like some help from the MQ R user group community – try posting your problem in our Slack workspace. This follows a stack-exchange format and anyone can post questions and answers – all questions across all platforms are permitted as long as they’re about data/stats.
Use this link to join the MQ R Users Group Slack workspace and keep up to date with all our future events: http://bit.ly/slack_MQRusers
Breakfast Seminar Series
Prof Ross Bradstock presents ‘The Science of Bushfire Risk’. The 2020 Science & Research Breakfast Seminar Series is held in the Strangers’ Function Room at Parliament House of NSW, Sydney.
Where: Parliament House of NSW. Entry is via Macquarie Street, Sydney. Guests are required to undergo routine security screening.
When: Wednesday 8 April. Breakfast, tea and coffee will be served from 7.30am. Seminars commence at 8am sharp and conclude by 9am. Tea and coffee will also be available afterwards.
RSVP: Friday 3 April 2020
To Register: Please click here
For further information: events.rsvp@chiefscientist.nsw.gov.au or call (02) 9338 6817
6th National Postgraduate Training Workshop in Systematics by the University of Adelaide (14 -19 June 2020)
The workshop is designed for PhD students in the first half of their project, but applications will be accepted from anyone who is still within candidature. It is specifically designed for students undertaking projects that have a biological systematics component or are broadly relevant to systematics. There is a maximum of 30 places – available only to students enrolled in Australian and New Zealand Universities, on a first come basis. The registration fee is $400 but this will be reduced when the amount of sponsorship received is known. For more information, see the PhD Workshop Flyer 2020
Venture Café – Given the current COVID-19 situation they have made the move to take Venture Cafe Sydney’s Thursday Gathering online for the foreseeable future – starting 5 March 2020.
The digital Thursday Gathering will still include regular favourites – for more information visit: https://venturecafesydney.org/whats-on-this-week
Wildlife at the Watering Hole – 3rd Tuesday of each month, 6:30pm @ Botany View Hotel, King St Newtown!
HDR NEWS AND OPPORTUNITIES
Research Enrichment Program (REP) Workshop Series – The Department’s research enrichment program for 2020 will commence soon – you can find out about upcoming workshops in the coming weeks. All HDR students are encouraged to attend several of these workshops each year to develop their skills and track record for the post-PhD world. Supervisors please encourage your students!
Val Williams Scholarship 2020 – The North Shore group of the Australian Plants Society invite Masters, Honours and PhD students of Botany to apply for the Val Williams Scholarship (worth up to $3000).
The important criteria are that the project must contribute to the knowledge of the ecology, conservation, or propagation of native plants in the Sydney and surrounding region; must be carried out within this region; and the applicant must be attached to an Australian research institute.
Applications close Friday 8 March 2020 and all applicants will be informed of the result by 17 April 2020.
STEP’s John Martyn Research Grant for the Conservation of Bushland in Sydney is now open for applications.
To apply, complete the application form electronically, save it and email it to <secretary@step.org.au> by 31 March 2020. We will announce the winner by 30 April 2020.
For more information go to http://step.org.au/grants and if you have any queries please email Helen Wortham <secretary@step.org.au>.
ADMIN THINGS
Call out for Volunteers – Biology Social Club – Thursday Drinks
The Biology Social Club is looking for volunteers to help host Thursday Drinks. To be able to run Thursday Drinks each fortnight we will need 3 or 4 additional volunteers that can commit to hosting 3 or 4 times this year.
For more information please contact <O365-Group-biosocialclub@mq.edu.au>
Volunteers – Are you looking for an extra pair of hands to help in the lab, field, etc? We have a huge list of volunteers who are keen to get experience in a range of biological science fields, so if you are looking for some free help, please contact Calli <calli.miller@mq.edu.au> for the latest Volunteers List.
Social Media – Have you participated in some exciting field work, biology-related events, or would like to share your research, and publications via Social Media?
Please send photos and a little blurb to Calli Miller: <calli.miller@mq.edu.au> so that your work can be promoted on the department social media pages.
Outreach Activities – Have You Participated in an Activity for Biology Recently? Don’t forget to fill in the super-quick form here – ACCESS OUTREACH FORM HERE
THIS AND THAT
Board Games Social
The Biology Social Club and the ECR committee have combined our forces to bring you a new initiative for 2020.
We will be running a friendly board games session every second Friday in the Biology tea room from 3 PM to 4 PM. There will be plenty of board and card games to choose from and you are very welcome to bring your own games too. Of course, you can join in anytime during the hour and the session can be extended later into the afternoon depending on participants’ enthusiasm. It will be a great opportunity to get to know your fellow Biology colleagues while forming some secret alliances or battling for world domination (or obliteration!). As per the social afternoons, there will be snacks and drinks available on donation.
Will be on the 13th and 27th March.
Please feel free to contact Lizzy (lizzy.lowe@mq.edu.au) or Shubham (shubham.chhajed@mq.edu.au) with any queries.
Correct Method for Submitting to Department Matters
Department Matters submissions now have their own email address. Please send all your news items for the newsletter to <fse.bionewsletter@mq.edu.au>
Have You Missed Out on an Issue of Department Matters? Back issues can be found at this newsletter archive link for your reading pleasure.
New Publications
The first management of a marine invader in Africa: The importance of trials prior to setting long-term management goals
By: Mabin, C.A., Wilson, J.R.U., Le Roux, J.J., Majiedt, O., Robinson, T.B. Journal of Environmental Management, 2020 | Find with Google Scholar »Effect of storage time on the physiological characteristics and vegetative regeneration of desiccation-tolerant mosses on the Loess Plateau, China.
By: Guo, Yuewei, Yunge Zhao, and Alison J. Downing. Restoration Ecology. | Find with Google Scholar »Research priorities for natural ecosystems in a changing global climate
By: Williams, Stephen E., Alistair J. Hobday, Lorena Falconi, Jean‐Marc Hero, Neil J. Holbrook, Samantha Capon, Nick R. Bond, Scott D. Ling, and Lesley Hughes. Global change biology 26, no. 2 (2020): 410-416. | Find with Google Scholar »Climate-driven shift in coral morphological structure predicts decline of juvenile reef fishes
By: Fontoura, Luisa, Kyle JA Zawada, Stephanie D’agata, Mariana Álvarez‐Noriega, Andrew H. Baird, Nader Boutros, Maria Dornelas et al. Global change biology 26, no. 2 (2020): 557-567. | Find with Google Scholar »Social Barriers in Ecological Landscapes: The Social Resistance Hypothesis
By: Armansin, Nicolette C., Adam J. Stow, Mauricio Cantor, Stephan T. Leu, James A. Klarevas-Irby, Anthony A. Chariton, and Damien R. Farine. Trends in ecology & evolution (2019). | Find with Google Scholar »The Evolution of Dragline Initiation in Spiders: Multiple Transitions from Multi- to Single-Gland Usage
By: Wolff, Jonas O. Diversity 12, no. 1 (2020): 4. | Find with Google Scholar »Amphibian Assisted Reproductive Technologies: Moving from Technology to Application
By: Clulow, J., R. Upton, V. L. Trudeau, and S. Clulow. In Reproductive Sciences in Animal Conservation, pp. 413-463. Springer, Cham, 2019. | Find with Google Scholar »In the Media
Emeritus Prof Andrew Beattie and Dr Jennifer McGowen co-authored a short summary of the paper Conservation prioritization can resolve the flagship species conundrum in the Millennium Alliance for Humanity and the Biosphere (MAHB) Newsletter published by Stanford University.
Read more »
Dr Alessandro Ossola was featured in Eco Voice regarding the benefits of backyard gardens in reducing land surface temperature by as much as 6 degrees.
Read more »
Dr Bruno Buzatto was featured in Australian Geographic regarding research into the behaviour of funnel-web spiders.
Read more »
Distinguished Professor Lesley Hughes was featured by The Guardian in a panel discussing the climate crisis.
Read more »
Dr Robert Kooyman provided comment to Mongabay regarding the Gondwana rainforests that were destroyed in the recent bushfires.
Read more »