conservation

Corals and Probiotics (Pint of Science Special) - Interview

Corals are incredible animals that support an estimated 25% of all marine life. But without the algae living inside them, coral reefs can’t survive. Scientists recently discovered that bacteria also live within these algae. Could the right bacteria help protect corals and their algae from rising global temperatures? In our second special episode for the Pint of Science Festival, we chat with Dr Justin Maire about his latest research.

You can learn more about Justin’s latest research in his latest scientific publication or in this article for Pursuit.

Pint of Science is an international festival which has been running in Australia for the last 7 years.

This not-for-profit science festival aims to bring local researchers out of the lab to speak with the public about their current science research. Find out more: https://pintofscience.com.au/festival/2021

Toad-Smart Quolls - Interview

In 1935, cane toads were introduced to Australia. This proved to be a terrible mistake. Australia now has hundreds of millions of toxic toads advancing across the country. How can we stop native predators from eating these highly poisonous toads?

In this episode, we chat with Dr Ella Kelly and Dr Naomi Indigo about their innovative efforts to save the endangered northern quoll – involving not-so-silly sausages, toad-smart traits, and the smell of “death”.

To read more about Ella and Naomi’s research, check out their peer-reviewed scientific papers, listed below. You can also find Ella and Naomi on Twitter (@ecology_ella and @NaomiIndigo).

Sources:

  1. Indigo N., Smith J., Webb J.K. and Phillips B. (2018) Not such silly sausages: Evidence suggests northern quolls exhibit aversion to toads after training with toad sausages. Austral Ecology 43 (5), 592-601. https://doi.org/10.1111/aec.12595

  2. Indigo N., Smith J., Webb J.K. and Phillips B. (2019) Bangers and cash: Baiting efficiency in a heterogeneous population. Wildlife Society Bulletin 43 (4), 669-677. https://doi.org/10.1002/wsb.1012

  3. Jolly C.J., Kelly E., Gillespie G.R., Phillips B. and Webb J.K. (2017) Out of the frying pan: Reintroduction of toad‐smart northern quolls to southern Kakadu National Park. Austral Ecology 43 (2), 139-149. https://doi.org/10.1111/aec.12551

  4. Kelly E. and Phillips B.L. (2017) Get smart: native mammal develops toad-smart behavior in response to a toxic invader. Behavioural Ecology 28 (3), 854-858. https://doi.org/10.1093/beheco/arx045

  5. Kelly E., Phillips B.L. and Webb J.K. (2018) Taste overshadows less salient cues to elicit food aversion in endangered marsupial. Applied Animal Behaviour Science 209, 83-87. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.applanim.2018.09.003

  6. Kelly E. and Phillips B.L. (2019) Targeted gene flow and rapid adaptation in an endangered marsupial. Conservation Biology 33 (1), 112-121. https://doi.org/10.1111/cobi.13149

  7. Kelly E., Kenbi Traditional Owners and Rangers, Jolly C.J., Indigo N., Smart A., Webb J. and Phillips B. (2020) No outbreeding depression in a trial of targeted gene flow in an endangered Australian marsupial. Conservation Genetics. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10592-020-01316-z

Isolation Animals: The Bad

In the third and final part in our Isolation Animals series, we look into the negative effects of COVID-19 on animals. In keeping with this episode’s “bad news” theme, this episode was much harder to record and took much longer to get out than the others - one challenge being keeping up with news in rapidly changing situations.

Here, we discuss how COVID-19 is changing attitudes towards some animals, how changing human behaviour is affecting wildlife conservation, and how certain wildlife protections are being weakened.

 

Conservation Special: Road Salts - Interview

 

Every winter, in the United States alone, more than 15 million tons of salt are spread over roads to remove ice. So what are the effects of all this extra salt on wildlife? In this episode, Dr Gareth Hopkins describes how increased salinity affects freshwater newts, and debunks a common myth about ‘environmentally-friendly’ de-icers.

Read more about Gareth’s research here: https://garethrhopkins.com/