Alyson Stobo-Wilson (PhD). Conservation ecology of the savanna glider (Petaurus ariel). (supervisors: Sue Carthew, Teigan Cremona, Brett Murphy)
Billy Ross (PhD). Responses of the northern quoll (Dasyurus hallucatus) to a large-scale feral predator baiting programme in the Pilbara, WA. (supervisors: Brett Murphy, John Woinarski, Teigan Cremona, Russell Palmer)
Video: Billy and the Northern Quolls
Stewart Pittard (PhD). Spatiotemporal population and impact ecology of feral Asian water buffalo, Bubalus bubalis, in Kakadu National Park, Australia (supervisors: Brett Murphy, Clive MacMahon)
Stewart’s research aims to determine current population size, rate of increase and distribution of buffalo in Kakadu National Park, examining their re-emergence in the Park since their near eradication in the 90s and modelling future spatiotemporal growth and management strategies. Concurrently, Stewart is modelling density-dependent buffalo damage using novel remote sensing technology to compare their varied landscape impacts against estimates of buffalo density across the Top End. Video: Know Your Enemy
Harinandanan Paramjyothi Venugopal (PhD). How do tree populations respond to fire management in the tropical savannas? (supervisors: Brett Murphy, Lindsay Hutley, Anna Richards, Jeremy Russell-Smith)
Cara Penton (PhD). A savanna housing crisis? Changing fire regimes, limited hollows and declining arboreal mammals in Australia’s tropical savannas. (supervisors: Brett Murphy, Leigh-Ann Woolley, Ian Radford)
Gavin Trewella (PhD). Management for the conservation of the northern quoll at Weipa. (supervisors: Brett Murphy, Teigan Cremon, Chris MacColl)
Bryan Baker (PhD) is investigating the utility and efficiencies of underwater video cameras as a fish survey method in tropical freshwater wetlands of northern Australia. His project is supported by the Environmental Research Institute of the Supervising Scientist (ERISS) of the Commonwealth Department of the Environment and Energy. The project will explore the use of video cameras as a survey technique by investigating video resolution required to identify fish by observers with varying experience and how visibility (such as turbidity and aquatic vegetation) or the use of fish baits affects detection rates of fish using video cameras. Fish survey techniques will be compared to understand the limitations and biases of video surveys by using a range of data collected by ERISS and my own surveys with both fish videography and other fish survey techniques. (supervisors: Alison King, David Crook, Brett Murphy)
Angie Reid (PhD, University of Tasmania) is looking at abundance, diversity, and landscape use of large native and introduced herbivores in northern Australian savannas in relation vegetation dynamics and Aboriginal fire use. She has field sites in the North Kimberley and Arnhem Land to study large macropods, cattle and buffalo and their interactions with forage and fire. (supervisors: David Bowman, Brett Murphy, Tom Vigilante)
Past students
Hugh Davies (PhD, University of Melbourne). Fire, Cats and the Decline of Northern Australia’s Mammals. (supervisors: Brett Murphy, Mick McCarthy, Alan Andersen, Graeme Gillespie)
Michelle Freeman (PhD, University of Melbourne). From Little Things Big Things Grow: Savanna Burning, Suppressed Trees and Escape from the Fire Trap in Australian Mesic Savannas. (supervisors: Brett Murphy, Peter Vesk, Garry Cook, Anna Richards)
Anna Miller (Honours). Comparing Camera Trapping and Timed Scat Searches as Survey Tools for Wilkins’ Rock-Wallaby (Petrogale wilkinsi). (supervisors: Brett Murphy, Brydie Hill)
Larissa Potter (Honours). Camera Trap Constraints in Focus: Assessing Detectability and Identification of Small Mammals in Camera Trap Studies. (supervisors: Brett Murphy, Chris Brady)
Tropical Savanna Ecology Research Group 