Current and past students I have had the opportunity to work with.

See Opportunities for new student project opportunities

Manuel Lequerica Tamara, The University of Sydney

PhD: The Ecology, Behaviour and Evolution of Syrphid Flies (Diptera: Syrphidae) along an Urbanisation Gradient

Manuel’s research aims to understand how the diversity and abundance of Australian syrphids change along a gradient of urbanisation. Manuel is also investigating if urban heat affects syrphids, and if or how they change their behaviours in response to novel resources provided by the urban landscape.

Elise Oakman, The University of Sydney

Does restoration of an endangered ecological community promote the return of pollination services?

It is important to consider the return of ecosystem services, in particular pollination, when restoring endangered ecological ecosystems. Elise's research aims to determine what pollinating insect communities return after restoration. In turn, this can be used to determine what pollinating services are present.

Julia Schiller, The University of Melbourne

PhD: Creating more connected and biodiversity-friendly cities using green roofs

Julia’s research aims to develop a better understanding of the biodiversity value of green roofs. Julia is investigating the habitat characteristics that enable the use of green roofs by insects, such as native bees. She aims to develop an easy-to-use planning tool that evaluates ecological connectivity in urban areas that accounts for both horizontal and vertical isolation.

Past students

Daniel Jin, The University of Sydney

PhD: The influence of urbanisation on arthropods and their ecological processes: a comprehensive approach

Urbanisation is a significant anthropogenic disturbance, frequently resulting in modified assemblages of species, changes in performance of individual species and altered trophic interactions. Daniel's project investigates the impact of urbanisation on arthropods and their trophic interactions in the Sydney region. He has investigated these in two different study systems: the herb layer and the native understorey tree Pittosporum undulatum.

Sabrina Velasco, University of Wollongong

Honours candidate: Bat Box Bluff? An Investigation into the Facilitated Dominance of Gould’s Wattled Bat

Sabrina’s project aimed to understand the influence of Gould’s Wattled bat (Chalinolobus gouldii) activity on the surrounding microbat community, and the role of microbat boxes in facilitating the dominance of this species.

Joanna Haddock, The University of Sydney

PhD Candidate: Effects of artificial lighting on insectivorous bat communities in urban ecosystems

Jo used acoustic surveying methods and radio telemetry techniques to examine the responses of species and guilds to light pollution, in a series of studies testing lighting impacts on bat commuting and foraging behaviour.

Jesse Kurylo, The University of Melbourne

PhD Candidate: The effect of urbanization on butterfly assemblages in Melbourne, Australia

Jesse's PhD project centered around understanding how the urban landscape's hard-scape (roads, sidewalks, buildings, etc like) and available resources affected butterfly richness and abundance, including taking a look at the effectiveness of wildlife gardening and larval food plants in affecting urban butterfly communities.