Effects of fire regime on ‘roo populations to be investigated
An investigation of the effects of traditional Aboriginal and contemporary fire management on kangaroo populations is among five University of Tasmania projects to receive Australian Research Council (ARC) Linkage Projects funding.
$2,057,620
in ARC funding for July
The fire management project (chief investigator Professor David Bowman) will investigate concerns that the cessation of Aboriginal patch burning is causing savannah kangaroo populations to decline across northern Australia. Partner organisations are Bush Heritage Australia and the Wunambal Gaambera Aboriginal Corporation based on the far north-west coast of the Kimberley.
A second University of Tasmania-led project (chief investigator Professor Chris Johnson), in partnership with Zoos Victoria, will explore whether guardian dogs can be used to reduce predation by feral cats and red foxes on threatened native wildlife.
Sydney ferry risk factor
The Australian Maritime College’s Dr Gregor Macfarlane will lead a project also involving Transport for NSW which aims to address one of the biggest risk factors to the Sydney ferry system, by ensuring that the waves new ferries generate are minimised.
Other ARC-funded initiatives include:
- A project to improve understanding of inshore ecosystems to better manage our living marine heritage (chief investigator Professor Graham Edgar; partner organisations include State departments and the Smithsonian Institution);
- A project which will lead to safer miner operations by developing a new generation of sensors that can accurately estimate the properties of underground rock mass in real time (chief investigator Professor Jan Olivier; partner organisation the Institute of Mine Seismology Pty Ltd).
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