SPEAKER: Professor Katriona Shea, Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics, The Pennsylvania State University, USA

DATE: Friday, 5th May 2017
LOCATION: Geelong Campus at Waurn Ponds – room ka4.207
TIME: 1:30pm
Seminar will also be video linked to the following campuses: Melbourne Campus at Burwood – Burwood Corporate Centre (BCC) (attendees-please report to reception for room details on the day) and Warrnambool Campus – room B3.03

External visitors – wish to join us and connect to our seminars?

• You may connect to the live seminar via *N SEBE VMP LES Seminars 52236958@deakin.edu.au [ID.36958] or via the methods listed HERE.
• For Deakin staff and students, please join via Skype for Business (Lync).
• Could not log in? More info on how to connect is available HERE.
• Please note that connection is only available while a seminar is taking place.

As a courtesy, we request that when connecting to the seminar that you mute your microphone unless you are required to speak, this would ensure that the sound from the speaker to the audience is not disrupted by feedback from your microphone – thank you!

ABSTRACT: Disturbances are ubiquitous in nature, and may contribute to biological invasions. The need to address the impacts of environmental perturbations is increasingly urgent in the face of anthropogenic alterations to existing disturbance regimes.

I will discuss how a framework involving six interacting aspects of disturbance regimes (frequency, intensity, duration, extent, timing and pace) can be used to study a wide range of issues related to basic and applied outbreak ecology. This framework can be used to improve empirical design and biological interpretation, which in turn leads to more efficient management.

Ongoing research not only informs us about when disturbances are likely to exacerbate invasions, but also lets us assess how we can manipulate disturbances to achieve desired management outcomes.

BIO: Katriona Shea is Professor of Ecology and the Alumni Professor in the Biological Sciences at the Pennsylvania State University in the USA. She uses a wide range of methods to study invasive and out breaking species, and their management.

Appointments with guest speaker may be made via John Endler.

SPEAKER: Dr Thomas Newsome, Alfred Deakin Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Centre for Integrative Ecology/School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University

DATE: Friday, 28th April 2017
LOCATION: Melbourne Campus at Burwood – Burwood Corporate Centre (attendees-please report to reception for room details on the day)
TIME: 1:30pm
Seminar will also be video linked to the following campuses: Geelong Campus at Waurn Ponds – room ka4.207; and Warrnambool Campus, Room B3.03

External visitors – wish to join us and connect to our seminars?

• You may connect to the live seminar via *N SEBE VMP LES Seminars 52236958@deakin.edu.au [ID.36958] or via the methods listed HERE.
• For Deakin staff and students, please join via Skype for Business (Lync).
• Could not log in? More info on how to connect is available HERE.
• Please note that connection is only available while a seminar is taking place.

As a courtesy, we request that when connecting to the seminar that you mute your microphone unless you are required to speak, this would ensure that the sound from the speaker to the audience is not disrupted by feedback from your microphone – thank you!

ABSTRACT: Apex predators are making a comeback in many parts of the world. This has sparked global interest in exploring how apex predators interact with other components of the ecosystem. In particular, there is interest in understanding how apex predators interact with lower order competitors or mesopredators. The expectation is that apex predators will suppress the abundance of mesopredators, but there have been few efforts to quantify this phenomenon at large spatial scales.

In this talk, I will outline the results of a new study that assessed whether apex predators can suppress the abundance of mesopredators at large spatial scales. I will outline the implications of the study for conservation, focusing broadly on the global extinction crisis.

In doing so, I will show that direct killing of wildlife by humans remains one of the greatest threats to the persistence of many species, that there is an urgent need to study the ecological role of apex predators in human dominated landscapes, and that we need to shift our conservation efforts to the smaller species who are just as threatened as the largest.

BIO: Thomas Newsome is an Alfred Deakin Postdoctoral Research Fellow and former Fulbright Scholar. He has broad research interests in the ecology, conservation and management of mammals.

His research addresses how species respond to human-induced changes to the landscape. He is particularly interested in how humans and top predators shape and drive ecosystem processes.

Appointments with guest speaker may be made via Euan Ritchie.

SPEAKER: Prof David Burt, Department of Genomics and Genetics, The Roslin Institute and Royal School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh

DATE: Friday, 21st April 2017
LOCATION: Geelong Campus at Waurn Ponds – room ka4.207
TIME: 1:30pm
Seminar will also be video linked to the following campuses: Melbourne Campus at Burwood – Burwood Corporate Centre (attendees-please report to reception on the day); and Warrnambool Campus – room B3.03

External visitors – wish to join us and connect to our seminars?

• You may connect to the live seminar via *N SEBE VMP LES Seminars 52236958@deakin.edu.au [ID.36958] or via the methods listed HERE.
• For Deakin staff and students, please join via Skype for Business (Lync).
• Could not log in? More info on how to connect is available HERE.
• Please note that connection is only available while a seminar is taking place.

As a courtesy, we request that when connecting to the seminar that you mute your microphone unless you are required to speak, this would ensure that the sound from the speaker to the audience is not disrupted by feedback from your microphone – thank you!

ABSTRACT: Our knowledge of avian genomes has increased rapidly, starting with the publication of the chicken genome in 2004, a milestone for avian and evolutionary biology. Advances in DNA sequencing now make it possible to produce draft sequences of any vertebrate genome, quickly and cheaply. We have seen the completion of draft genomes of more than 50 other birds, with plans to sequence all 10,000 by the B10K Consortium.

With advances in long read sequencing and optical mapping, we are seeing chromosome level genome assemblies with N50 contigs of 20-30Mb.  The annotation of genomes has also been under continuous improvement, taking advantage of transcriptome data generated both by short and long read RNA sequencing technologies.

Recently, we sequenced normalised full-length chicken cDNA libraries with Pacific Bioscience Iso-Seq. From these Iso-Seq sequencing projects, over 60K transcripts and 29K genes were defined within the chicken transcriptome. Of these, more than 20K are novel long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) transcripts with approx. 3K classified as sense-exonic overlapping lncRNA, which is a class that is underrepresented in all other vertebrate annotations. The relative proportion of alternative transcription events revealed striking similarities between the chicken and human transcriptomes.

Our results indicate that the chicken transcriptome is similar in complexity (with multiple starts and stops, and alternative isoforms) compared to human. Our improved methodology demonstrates the potential of Iso-Seq sequencing to rapidly expand our knowledge of the transcriptomes of any complex organism. Recently, the analysis of 44 bird genomes by the Avian Phylogenomics Consortium created new opportunities. For individual species, the sequences coupled with the initial annotations, can serve as a vehicle for basic research. On the other hand generating a multiple genome sequence alignment can enable comparative studies, which benefits all these species. Such studies broaden our understanding of genome evolution and the evolution of traits or can help to disentangle phylogenetic relationships.

Our main aim is to integrate these and other data sources (transcripts, CAGE-seq, ChIP-seq, ATAC-seq, etc. for example as part of the FAANG initiative) with a focus on creating a detailed functional map relevant to birds. Such a map can be used to drive the identification of novel protein-coding and non-coding genes, binding sites for transcription factors, enhancers or other functional elements.

I will review the current status of avian genome annotation and open up the discussion on future possibilities using phylogenomics in the study of species diversity and the evolution of avian traits.

BIO: Professor David W. Burt, FRSB, FLS received his B.Sc. in Molecular Biology at Edinburgh University (1977), a PhD in molecular genetics from Leicester University (1980) and MSc modules in Bioinformatics from Manchester University (2002). His post-doctoral training included research on molecular genetics of a wide range of species (bacteriophage lambda, bacteria, mouse, rat and human) and research areas (transcription circuits, cDNA cloning of growth factors, renin-angiotensin system and hypertension, QTL mapping, bioinformatics, phylogenetics and avian genomics). He has worked with AstraZeneca at Leicester University (UK), Harvard Medical School (USA), MRC Clinical Research Centre (UK) and Roslin Institute/Edinburgh University (UK). He was appointed Head of Avian Genomics Group (1988), Director of ARK-Genomics (2000), Director of the National Avian Research Facility (2014), convener of Institute Strategic Program (Genomics, 2016) and Personal Chair in Comparative Genomics, University of Edinburgh (2009).

In 2017, Professor David W. Burt was appointed Director of the UQ Genomics Initiative  a virtual network that aims to facilitate partnerships and engagement across all genomics researchers at UQ and beyond. UQ genomics research has the potential for strong synergies with The Roslin Institute and we hope to develop this relationship over the coming years. To facilitate this Professor Burt will continue to work closely with The Roslin Institute in his new capacity at UQ and will hold an honorary Chair in Comparative Genomics at Edinburgh University.

He has obtained over $70m in competitive funding to support his research activities and has published over 300 articles, books and chapters (h-index 57) including in high impact journals such as Nature, Science, Nature Genetics, Current Biology and Genome Research. His current research is focused on comparative genomics and applications in poultry and other livestock species.  He has served on many scientific committees, including the BBSRC Animal Science Committee, the Scottish Branch Council of the Royal Society of Biology, the Board for Edinburgh Genomics and several editorial boards. He is active in promoting avian genomics as co-chair in various consortia and international meetings, including the International Chicken Genome Consortium, International Society for Animal Genetics (ISAG), Bird10K, Avian Model Systems, Plant & Animal Genome workshop on Avian Genomes and theInternational Functional Annotation of Animal Genomes (FAANG) Steering Committee.

The UQ Genomics Initiative offers a clear point of entry to UQ’s collective genomic capabilities, including its interactions with government and industry. The Director ensures that the UQ Genomics Initiative facilitates interdisciplinary interactions in fundamental and applied research, education, training and consulting across all faculties and institutes. It is my goal to build synergies throughout Australasia to promote and enhance a regional Genomics Community.

Appointments with guest speaker may be made via Kate Buchanan.

SPEAKER: Dr Andre Chiaradia, Penguin Ecologist, Research Department, Phillip Island Nature Parks

DATE: Friday, 7th April 2017
LOCATION: Geelong Campus at Waurn Ponds – room ka4.207
TIME: 1:30pm
Seminar will also be video linked to the following campuses: Melbourne Campus at Burwood – room T3.22; and Warrnambool Campus – room B3.03

External visitors – wish to join us and connect to our seminars?

• You may connect to the live seminar via *N SEBE VMP LES Seminars 52236958@deakin.edu.au [ID.36958] or via the methods listed HERE.
• For Deakin staff and students, please join via Skype for Business (Lync).
• Could not log in? More info on how to connect is available HERE.
• Please note that connection is only available while a seminar is taking place.

As a courtesy, we request that when connecting to the seminar that you mute your microphone unless you are required to speak, this would ensure that the sound from the speaker to the audience is not disrupted by feedback from your microphone – thank you!

ABSTRACT: Climate change is fast affecting marine biodiversity all over the world through changes in water temperature, current circulation and, ultimately, marine productivity.  These changes are putting increasing pressure on top predators like seabirds and penguins in particular. Today, almost 60 % of the penguin species are declining in numbers. Most of these declines have been happening in the last 30 years. The challenge for penguin biologists and marine environmental managers alike is to identify priority areas for penguin biodiversity conservation.

In Australia, we have been studying little penguins’ life cycle under rapid environmental changes. While Phillip Island penguins are doing surprisingly well, increasing ocean temperature is affecting little penguins elsewhere. Resilient but increasingly vulnerable, penguins may struggle to adapt to further warming seas.

This talk will give a global snapshot with information on marine biodiversity using a novel fine scale assessment of the impacts of climate change and industrial fisheries, identifying areas of high marine biodiversity that are particularly affected by climate and human stressors. It will then zoom in on little penguins in Australia to explore how individuals and populations of little penguins are responding to the fast change in the marine system of southern Australia.

BIO: Chase penguins for a living, or ecosystem ecology using penguins as model. Keen but kook at surfing. See also at ‘Meet the Scientist‘

Appointments with guest speaker may be made via Ondi Crino.

SPEAKER: Dr Janne Valkonen, Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, University of Jyvaskyla, Finland

DATE: Friday, 31st March 2017
LOCATION: Geelong Campus at Waurn Ponds – room ka4.207
TIME: 1:30pm
Seminar will also be video linked to the following campuses: Melbourne Campus at Burwood – Burwood Corporate Centre (attendees-please report to reception on the day); and Warrnambool Campus, Room B3.03

External visitors – wish to join us and connect to our seminars?

• You may connect to the live seminar via *N SEBE VMP LES Seminars 52236958@deakin.edu.au [ID.36958] or via the methods listed HERE.
• For Deakin staff and students, please join via Skype for Business (Lync).
• Could not log in? More info on how to connect is available HERE.
• Please note that connection is only available while a seminar is taking place.

As a courtesy, we request that when connecting to the seminar that you mute your microphone unless you are required to speak, this would ensure that the sound from the speaker to the audience is not disrupted by feedback from your microphone – thank you!

ABSTRACT: Camouflage and warning signalling have been conventionally treated as distinct strategies exploiting opposing ends of the detectability axis. Detectability and appearance of an animal are not only dependent on receiver´s vision and cognition, light conditions and background against which it is perceived, but it can be also altered by the animal’s behaviour. Thus, the protective function of animal colouration may be achieved via several mechanisms. Venomous European vipers appear hard to detect while coiled in basking posture. When detected they are easy to recognise because of their zigzag dorsal pattern. However, when approached by a potential enemy, vipers often flee. During escape, the zigzag pattern can make both movement speed and direction hard to estimate.

In this seminar I present field and laboratory experiments testing the function of vipers’ protective colouration before and after detection, and discuss findings can explain their inconspicuous warning colouration.

Some non-venomous species are mimicking venomous vipers in order to enhance their survival. Yet the natural advantage of repelling predators may be counteracted by humans inclined to kill species that they consider dangerous. I will introduce the case of the protected, endangered, non-venomous smooth snake (Coronella austriaca) that mimics the non-protected venomous viper (Vipera berus), both of which occur in the Åland archipelago, Finland.

Resemblance of vipers enhances survival of smooth snakes against predation because many predators avoid touching venomous vipers. Mimetic resemblance is however disadvantageous against human predators, who kill vipers and may accidentally kill harmless, endangered smooth snakes. Human induced costs may counterbalance benefits of viper-mimicry and it may not be beneficial anymore in human influenced habitats.

BIO: MSc. University of Jyväskylä 2011 / /PhD. University of Jyväskylä 2014. Current position: Postdoctoral researcher (2014 onwards) Centre of Excellence in Biological Interactions, University of Jyväskylä, Finland.

I lost my hart to herpetology over 20 years ago and still reptiles and amphibians are my favourite. However, my main research interests are broadly in animal communication, behavioural ecology and predator prey interactions and I have been working with several study systems (e.g. lizards, snakes, frogs, moths, beetles, butterflies, birds, fish, human).

In addition to my main interests in behavioural ecology, I also just started a project studying biogeography and invasion status of Pelophylax frogs in Finland.

Appointments with guest speaker may be made via John.Endler.

SPEAKER: Dr Lucie Bland, Research Fellow in Ecosystem Risk Assessment, Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University

DATE: Friday, 24th March 2017
LOCATION: Warrnambool Campus, Room B3.03
TIME: 1:30pm
Seminar will also be video linked to the following campuses: Melbourne Campus at Burwood – Burwood Corporate Centre (attendees-please report to reception on the day); and Geelong Campus at Waurn Ponds – room ka4.207

External visitors – wish to join us and connect to our seminars?

• You may connect to the live seminar via *N SEBE VMP LES Seminars 52236958@deakin.edu.au [ID.36958] or via the methods listed HERE.
• For Deakin staff and students, please join via Skype for Business (Lync).
• Could not log in? More info on how to connect is available HERE.
• Please note that connection is only available while a seminar is taking place.

As a courtesy, we request that when connecting to the seminar that you mute your microphone unless you are required to speak, this would ensure that the sound from the speaker to the audience is not disrupted by feedback from your microphone – thank you!

ABSTRACT: Global assessments of risks to biodiversity are central to measuring progress towards international targets and prioritizing conservation actions. I will present some of my work on the science behind the IUCN Red List of Ecosystems, the new global standard for assessing risks to marine, freshwater, and terrestrial ecosystems.

Key to the implementation of the IUCN Red List of Ecosystems is the concept of ecosystem collapse, i.e. the endpoint of ecosystem decline. With a systematic literature review on marine pelagic and temperate forest ecosystems, I identify key shortfalls in current definitions and conceptualizations of ecosystem collapse, and provide clear recommendations for risk assessment.

My first case study focuses on the Meso-American coral reef ecosystem, and I demonstrate how multiple sources of evidence (such as remotely-sensed data, field data, and ecosystem models) can be used jointly to provide reliable and informative risk assessments.

My second case study uses ecosystem models to reconstruct historical ecosystem changes in the southern Benguela of South Africa. My work at Deakin University will focus on assessing risks to ecosystems services with mechanistic ecosystem models.

BIO: Lucie Bland holds a BA (Hons) in Biological Sciences from the University of Oxford and a PhD from Imperial College London. Lucie completed her first postdoc at the University of Melbourne and is now a Research Fellow at the Centre for Integrative Ecology at Deakin University.

Her work focuses on assessing risks to biodiversity with the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species and IUCN Red List of Ecosystems protocols. She is interested in ecosystem modelling, macroecology, and global conservation policy.

Appointments with guest speaker may be made via Graeme Hays.

SPEAKER: Prof Brett Bryan, School of Life & Environmental Sciences, Centre for Integrative Ecology, Deakin University

DATE: Friday, 17th March 2017
LOCATION: Geelong Campus at Waurn Ponds – room ka4.207
TIME: 1:30pm
Seminar will also be video linked to the following campuses: Melbourne Campus at Burwood, Room LT 5 (B3.07); and Warrnambool Campus, Room B3.03

External visitors – wish to join us and connect to our seminars?

• You may connect to the live seminar via *N SEBE VMP LES Seminars 52236958@deakin.edu.au [ID.36958] or via the methods listed HERE.
• For Deakin staff and students, please join via Skype for Business (Lync).
• Could not log in? More info on how to connect is available HERE.
• Please note that connection is only available while a seminar is taking place.

As a courtesy, we request that when connecting to the seminar that you mute your microphone unless you are required to speak, this would ensure that the sound from the speaker to the audience is not disrupted by feedback from your microphone – thank you!

ABSTRACT: While computing tools have continued to increase in processing capacity exponentially following Moore’s law, physical limits mean that these improvements have not transferred directly to sustainability analyses using traditional tools such as GIS and remote sensing. At the same time, increases in the complexity of sustainability challenges have continued, and new methods from data science such as deep learning have emerged.

In the seminar I share experiences from our journey from catchment level analysis of integrated natural resource management problems like conservation, water resource management, and land degradation, through to addressing global challenges of food security emissions abatement, climate change, and energy security at large spatial scales using high-performance computing.

I evaluate a range of different software and hardware platforms for analyzing spatial and temporal data using parallel programming and high-performance computing. I will show a range of applications from multifunctional landscape planning, to modelling crop yields, tree growth and carbon sequestration, large-scale data handling using a range of different combinations of software and high-performance computing hardware.

These advances in computational capability have led to a step change in both the scale and resolution at which we can address pressing global sustainability challenges and they can work for you too.

BIO: Bryan is an internationally-recognised research leader focused on creating cost-effective policy and management solutions for people and the environment. As a geographer, Bryan has research interests in the application and development of computational tools and analytical methods in a diverse array of social and environmental contexts.

He has expertise and over 20 years of experience in quantitative spatio-temporal data analysis and modelling. He has domain expertise in integrated modelling and assessment of land use and ecosystem services, and has worked in both terrestrial and marine environments.

Bryan’s research interests are at the human/environment interface combining aspects of land use and management; agriculture and food security; water resources management; global change impact assessment, mitigation, and adaptation; biodiversity conservation; energy analysis; and economic and policy analysis.

He has conducted research in China, India, Indonesia, the United States, and many parts of Australia. He has successfully delivered several major research projects including the Lower Murray Landscape Futures and the land use component of the Australian National Outlook.

Appointments with guest speaker may be made via Natasha Kaukov.

SPEAKER: Prof Michael Romero, Department of Biology, Tufts University, Massachusetts, United States

DATE: Friday, 10th March 2017
LOCATION: Geelong Campus at Waurn Ponds – room ka4.207
TIME: 1:30pm
Seminar will also be video linked to the following campuses: Melbourne Campus at Burwood, Room LT 5 (B3.07); and Warrnambool Campus, Room B3.03

External visitors – wish to join us and connect to our seminars?

• You may connect to the live seminar via *N SEBE VMP LES Seminars 52236958@deakin.edu.au [ID.36958] or via the methods listed HERE.
• For Deakin staff and students, please join via Skype for Business (Lync).
• Could not log in? More info on how to connect is available HERE.
• Please note that connection is only available while a seminar is taking place.

As a courtesy, we request that when connecting to the seminar that you mute your microphone unless you are required to speak, this would ensure that the sound from the speaker to the audience is not disrupted by feedback from your microphone – thank you!

ABSTRACT: Many human-induced environmental changes are potentially stressful stimuli to wildlife; often they are stressful but sometimes they aren’t. Distinguishing between whether they are or are not stressful is of prime importance for conservation. Monitoring the presence, dynamics, and strength of the physiological responses to stress in potentially affected individuals can help determine whether those individuals are adversely affected.

In other words, stress physiology can tell us how well those individuals are coping with these stimuli. How those individuals respond to stress thus becomes an index for how problematic is the human-induced environmental change for that population and species. The ultimate goal is to use physiological responses to predict the health of individuals and populations that are at risk of extinction.

BIO: Michael Romero is a Professor of Biology at Tufts University in the United States. He has spent over 20 years studying stress, with an emphasis on understanding what causes stress in wild animals and how those animals successfully cope with that stress to survive in their natural habitats.

His work has spanned studies on birds, reptiles, mammals and amphibians and recently culminated in a co-written book; “Tempests, Poxes, Predators, and People: Stress in Wild Animals and How They Cope”. Professor Romero is currently on sabbatical in Australia.

Appointments with guest speaker may be made via Kate Buchanan.

SPEAKER: Dr Camilla Whittington, Research Fellow / Evolutionary and Integrative Zoology Lab School of Veterinary Science, Faculty of Science, The University of Sydney, NSW

DATE: Friday, 3rd March 2017
LOCATION: Geelong Campus at Waurn Ponds – room ka4.207
TIME: 1:30pm
Seminar will also be video linked to the following campuses: Melbourne Campus at Burwood, Room LT 5 (B3.07); and Warrnambool Campus, Room J2.22

External visitors – wish to join us and connect to our seminars?

• You may connect to the live seminar via *N SEBE VMP LES Seminars 52236958@deakin.edu.au [ID.36958] or via the methods listed HERE.
• For Deakin staff and students, please join via Skype for Business (Lync).
• Could not log in? More info on how to connect is available HERE.
• Please note that connection is only available while a seminar is taking place.

As a courtesy, we request that when connecting to the seminar that you mute your microphone unless you are required to speak, this would ensure that the sound from the speaker to the audience is not disrupted by feedback from your microphone – thank you!

ABSTRACT: Evolutionary innovations such as eyes, eusociality, venom, and live birth (viviparity) are dramatic, adaptive novelties that have shaped the evolutionary trajectories of animals. However, their origins are poorly understood because they are produced by the collective action and evolution of thousands of genes.

By applying new molecular technologies to a targeted range of animals, my work aims to elucidate the genetic underpinnings of evolutionary innovations and to discover fundamental evolutionary mechanisms.

I will discuss my research into mammalian venom evolution, using the platypus as a model, as well as my studies of the transition from oviparity (egg laying) to viviparity in reptiles and the pot-bellied seahorse. My work suggests that there are common evolutionary mechanisms that underpin the development of novel traits across divergent species.

BIO: I completed my PhD at the University of Sydney and postdoctoral positions at the University of Zurich and the University of Sydney. I also spent time as a Fulbright Fellow at Washington University working on platypus venom.

I’m now focusing on the evolution of pregnancy, funded by a University of Sydney Research Fellowship and L’Oreal-UNESCO for Women in Science Fellowship.

Appointments with guest speaker may be made via John Endler.

SPEAKER: Dr Jacques-Olivier Laloё, Sea Turtles Ecology, Climate Change and Conservation Biology, Swansea University, Wales, UK

DATE: Friday, 24th February 2017
LOCATION: Warrnambool Campus, Room B3.03
TIME: 1:30pm
Seminar will also be video linked to the following campuses: Melbourne Campus at Burwood, Room LT4 (B3.05) and Geelong Campus at Waurn Ponds, room ka4.207

External visitors – wish to join us and connect to our seminars?

• You may connect to the live seminar via *N SEBE VMP LES Seminars 52236958@deakin.edu.au [ID.36958] or via the methods listed HERE.
• For Deakin staff and students, please join via Skype for Business (Lync).
• Could not log in? More info on how to connect is available HERE.
• Please note that connection is only available while a seminar is taking place.

As a courtesy, we request that when connecting to the seminar that you mute your microphone unless you are required to speak, this would ensure that the sound from the speaker to the audience is not disrupted by feedback from your microphone – thank you!

ABSTRACT: Climate change is threatening species whose biology is intimately linked to temperature. A warming world poses challenges for species with temperature-dependent sex determination (TSD), including sea turtles, for which warmer incubation temperatures produce female hatchlings.

Warming temperatures have the potential to create imbalanced sex ratios that could threaten future population viability. Furthermore, a turtle embryo successfully develops within a relatively narrow thermal range, further raising concerns for the future of sea turtles worldwide.

In this seminar I will present some of my ongoing research on the linked effects of warming temperatures on the sex ratio and hatchling output of sea turtles. This work informs on the long-term viability of sea turtle populations around the world.

BIO: Dr Jacques-Olivier Laloë is currently a visiting researcher at Deakin University, Australia. He obtained his PhD from Swansea University (Wales, UK) in August 2016. His main research interests are sea turtle ecology, climate change and conservation.

Appointments with guest speaker may be made via Graeme Hays.