Welcome to the web page of Professor Alistair Poore at the University of New South Wales.

Recent news from the lab:

31.6.23. Sgarlatta et al. accepted for publication in Methods in Ecology and Evolution – a new method to measure fish predation pressure in situ.

27.4.23. Flores-Moreno et al. accepted for publication in Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution – Is Australia weird? A cross-continental comparison of biological, geological and climatological features.

11.4.23. Thompson et al. accepted for publication in Biological Conservation – motivations for citizen scientists to contribute biodiversity data.

14.2.23. Ferretto et al. accepted for publication in Restoration Ecology – using plant traits to optimise restoration success in Posidonia.

24.1.23. Callaghan et al. accepted for publication in BioScience – experimental evidence that participants in citizen science projects can be nudged to collect improved biodiversity data

28.12.22. Ferretto et al. accepted for publication in Diversity – habitat provisioning by a threatened seagrass

31.8.22. Thompson et al. accepted for publication in Diversity and Distributions – determinants of frog calling across Australia

5.7.22. Ferretto et al. accepted for publication in Aquaculture – oyster farming methods to promote seagrass survival.

9.5.22. Giulia awarded her PhD – Solutions for restoring and protecting the threatened seagrass Posidonia australis.

29.3.22. ARC Linkage Grant success. A new project to predict blue-bottles on Sydney beaches. Led by Amandine Schaeffer (UNSW) with colleagues from Surf Life Saving Australia, Griffith University, Bureau of Meterology, NSW Department of Primary Industries and University of Toulon.

7.3.22. Leong et al. accepted for publication in Restoration Ecology – spatial variation in habitat structure of oyster reefs.

28.2.22. Bolt et al. accepted for publication in Marine Ecology Progress Series – using photos of fish in iNaturalist to quantify reef habitats.

10.1.22. Roberts et al. accepted for publication in Biodiversity and Conservation – use of iNaturalist fish photos for reef monitoring.

23.12.21. Navarro-Barranco et al. accepted for publication in Oikos – effects of habitat complexity on facilitation along a stress gradient.

10.12.21. Guilia submits her PhD thesis on seagrass restoration.

6.9.21. Callaghan et al. accepted for publication in Scientific Reports – traits of birds that predict over-representation in citizen science data sets.

15.8.21. Ferretto et al. accepted for publication in Biological Conservation – restoration of threatened seagrass with the help of citizen scientists

20.7.21. Ledet et al. accepted for publication in Science of the Total Environment – tolerance of marine epifauna to extreme warming

29.4.2021. Stelling-Wood et al. accepted for publication in Ecology and Evolution – shifts in the structure of habitat forming algae across a latitudinal gradient.

9.4.2021. Callaghan et al. accepted for publication in Basic and Applied Ecology – urbanisation effects on frog diversity

22.3.2021. Lanham et al. accepted for publication in Marine Environment Research – habitat fragmentation effects on fish and epifauna

10.2.2021. Talia awarded her PhD – Using trait-based approaches to understand morphological variation in macroalgae and its influence on associated communities

2.2.2021. Ruby awarded her PhD – Effects of altered herbivory and urbanisation on seagrasses in a changing ocean

29.1.2021. Callaghan et al. accepted for publication in Journal of Biogeography – annual patterns of urban tolerance in birds

17.11.2020. Callaghan et al. accepted for publication in Biodiversity and Conservation – predictors of bird diversity across US cities

27.10.2020. Whalen et al. out now in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA – global map of ocean predation

24.9.2020. Callaghan et al. accepted for publication in BioScience – use of citizen science for biodiversity monitoring

8.9.2020. Heck et al. accepted for publication in Estuaries and Coasts – global patterns in seagrass herbivory

4.8.2020. Clark et al. accepted for publication in Frontiers in Marine Science – thermal sensitivity of a habitat forming macroalga

19.6.2020. Campbell et al. accepted for publication in Marine Environmental Research. Effects of acclimation on thermal tolerance

8.6.2020. Martínez-Laiz et al. accepted for publication in Mediterranean Marine Science – early detection of an invasive species

3.4.2020. Gutow et al. accepted for publication in Proceedings of the Royal Society B – small burrowing herbivores cause major damage to large kelps

23.3.2020. Gribben et al. accepted for publication in Scientific Reports – native habitat-forming species facilitating an invasive crab

17.3.2020. Campbell et al. accepted for publication in Marine Biology – resilience of a marine invertebrate to heat wave conditions.

16.1.2020. Callghan et al. accepted for publication in Biodiversity and Conservation – effectiveness of citizen science data in predicting continental scale patterns in species richness.

29.12.2019. Stelling-Wood et al. accepted for publication in Functional Ecology – using morphological traits in macroalgae to predict associated fauna.

20.12.2019. Lanham et al. accepted for publication in Ecosphere – facilitation cascades supporting biodiversity

29.11.2019. Callaghan et al. accepted for publication in Ecography – responses of birds to urbanisation.

20.11.2019. Chris receives a grant from the Seaworld Research and Rescue Foundation for his work on using recreational dive photos for monitoring reef condition.

10.9.2019. Mussri et al. accepted for publication in Marine Biology – variation in consumer pressure across 2500 km of the Chilean coast

6.9.2019. Callaghan et al. accepted for publication in Proceedings of the Royal Society B – Optimizing future biodiversity sampling by citizen scientists

29.8.2019. Giulia is awarded the John Holliday Student Conservation Prize from the NSW Department of Primary Industries for 2019.

23.8.19.  Giulia’s article on Posidonia australis restoration published in Australasian Plant Conservation

26.7.19. Brendan is now Dr Lanham – PhD approved.

11.7.19. Janine wins the Ron Kenny prize for best student presentation at AMSA 2019 in Fremantle. Janine, Talia and Chris all present their research at that meeting.

20.6.19. Callaghan et al. accepted for publication in PLOS Biology – a framework for optimising citizen science data

21.2.19. Macolino et al. accepted for publication in Frontiers of Marine Science – impacts of boat moorings on soft sediment infauna

5.2.19. Brandenburger et al. accepted for publication in Proceedings of the Royal Society B – rapid evolution in an introduced plant

14.11.18. Alistair promoted to Professor at UNSW.

8.11.18. Poore et al. accepted for publication in Marine Biology – mesograzer impacts on giant kelp

29.10.18. Alistair is now Head of School for the School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences.

20.10.18. Launch of Operation Posidonia – using volunteers to assist in restoration of a threatened seagrass

5.10.18. Clark et al. accepted for publication in Journal of Plant Physiology – algal morphology and performance across thermal gradients

17.8.18. Glasier et al. accepted for publication in Insectes Sociaux – host range of insects associated with ants

6.8.18. Clarissa Fraser joins the lab as a Postdoctoral Research Associate

2.7.18. Alistair starts as Acting Head of School for the School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences.

22.5.18. Alistair presents his research at the 9th International Crustacean Congress, Washington DC.

23.4.18. Congratulations to Hannah, who has her PhD thesis approved – now Dr. Sheppard-Brennand.

27.3.18. Talia and Janine present their research at the 47th Benthic Ecology Meeting, Texas

7.3.18. Graba-Landry et al. accepted for publication in Marine Ecology Progress Series – warming and acidification effects on subtropical macroalgae

15.2.18. Alistair visits northern Chile for some work in the kelp forests next to the Atacama desert.

5.2.18. Lanham et al. accepted for publication in Marine Pollution Bulletin – effects of boat moorings on fish communities.

24.1.1.8. Vergés et al. accepted for publication in Global Ecology and Biogeography – latitudinal patterns in seagrass herbivory.

23.1.18. Ledet et al. accepted for publication in Oecologia – temperature effects on a marine herbivore depend strongly on diet

22.11.17. Gribben et al. accepted for publication in Ecosphere – importance of considering trophic interactions in facilitation cascades.

2.11.17. Congratulations to Hannah for submitting her PhD thesis.

20.9.17. The lab welcomes Carlos Navarro-Blanco, visiting from Universidad Autónoma de Madrid for 5 months.

31.8.17. Hannah’s review of predator effects on urchins is Editor’s choice in this month’s issue of Ecography

7.8.17. My comments on the “sea lice” attack in Melbourne in the New York Times, The Guardian, and live on ABC News24

2.8.17. Evans et al. accepted for publication in Restoration Ecology – role of genetic diversity in promoting restoration success of a threatened seagrass.

31.7.17. Evans et al. accepted for publication in Frontiers in Plant Science: a special topic on the Conservation Ecology of Aquatic Plants

8.7.17. Poore et al. accepted for publication in PNAS – evolution of herbivory in the Crustacea.

3.7.17. Brendan, Janine, Talia and Ruby present their research at the Australian Marine Sciences Association annual conference in Darwin. Janine and Talia win prizes for their presentations.

7.6.17. Janine wins prize for best ecosystem science presentation in the School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences’ postgraduate forum.

12.4.17. Hannah’s weird urchin defence story from The American Naturalist featured on New Scientist.

9.3.17. Congratulations to Keryn who has just submitted her PhD thesis – understanding the factors that affect diet choice in herbivores in the field.

18.2.17. Alistair visits Martin Thiel in Coquimbo for some field work in the kelp forests of northern Chile

13.2.17. Alistair gives an invited presentation at the Gordon Research Conference on Plant-herbivore interactions, Ventura, California

8.12.16. Hannah’s urchin defence paper accepted for publication in The American Naturalist

8-11.12.16. The lab visits Smiths Lake for the Smithsonian’s Ocean Bitemap – a global project to measure the strength of predation in coastal ecosystems

1-4.11.16.  Alistair visits Randall Hughes and David Kimbro at the Marine Science Centre, Northeastern University, Boston, USA

14-31.10.16. Alistair visits Erik Sotka at the Grice Marine Laboratory, Charleston, South Carolina, USA.

10.8.16. Sheppard Brennand et al. accepted for publication in Ecography – global patterns in the effects of predators on sea urchins.

20.7.16. Foo et al. accepted for publication in Marine Ecology Progress Series – urchin responses to ocean acidification and warming.

18.7.16. Congratulations to Talia who has had her MPhil thesis approved.

7.4.16. Sotka et al. accepted for publication in Zoologica Scripta – evolutionary relationships among herbivorous amphipods.

6.4.16. Congratulations to Suzy who has had her PhD thesis approved.

24.3.16. Hughes & Poore accepted for publication in Marine Biodiversity Records.

23.3.16. Poore et al. accepted for publication in Marine Biology – temperature and pH effects on algal growth and palatability.

24.2.16. Stelling-Wood et al. accepted for publication in Marine Environmental Research – human impacts on ghost crabs on urban sandy beaches.

23.2.16. Bain & Poore accepted for publication in Marine Biology – use of near infrared spectroscopy to quantify animal diets.

7.1.16. Evans et al. accepted for publication in PeerJ – links between seagrass genotype and ecological funtioning.