Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Eastern Australia'

Parasites are a major component of the Earth’s biota, yet are often overlooked and their importance underestimated. They affect nearly all organisms and can potentially regulate the populations of their hosts. Jellyfish are abundant members of the zooplankton community and are renowned for their ability to form large blooms. Jellyfish host a large diversity of parasites. Some of these parasites (e.g. hyperiid amphipods and parasitic anemones) use jellyfish as the sole host in their life cycle, whilst others (e.g. digenean trematodes and cestodes) use jellyfish as an intermediate host between other host organisms. There have been few ecological studies of jellyfish parasites (for example of spatial and temporal variation in parasite-host relationships) relative to other aspects of jellyfish biology. This may be partly attributable to the very small size of some parasites (e.g. digenean trematodes) and also to difficulties such as identifying larval parasite forms. However, with the advent of new technologies, such as molecular identification, and with diligent examination, these difficulties are able to be overcome. This thesis aims to identify jellyfish parasites using molecular and morphological techniques and elucidate their life cycles, examine spatial and temporal variation in jellyfish parasites and investigate the diversity and host specificity of the parasites of jellyfish in eastern Australia.
Thesis (PhD Doctorate)
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Griffith School of Environment
Science, Environment, Engineering and Technology
Full Text

Palaeobotany illuminates past environments by relating the fossilised species to the existing geological conditions. This has previously been done with fossilised leaves and spores but not with fossilised wood. The recovery of a significant quantity of wood from an area of Tertiary sediments in New South Wales, enabled the used of fossilised wood as a palaeoenvironmental tool. Tertiary sedimentary deposits of south eastern Australia are diverse lithologically, occupy distinct areas and are limited in vertical and horizontal extent. However, samples in museum collections together with samples from field work and descriptions of fossil wood from previous researchers enabled an analysis of the fossil wood. The geological and palaeontological aspects of the fossil wood were considered for each specimen. Only specimens with precise information concerning location and description of the sedimentary deposits in which the specimens were found were investigated. Lithology, sedimentary structures and the relationship with surrounding geological units were also considered. The samples were then classified and identified. It was possible to identify fossil wood to Family level by comparison with existing taxa. In the majority of cases, identification to species level was not possible due to the lack of detail in the specimen and because features such as colour cannot be used with fossilised specimens. With Australian fossilised wood, a systematic nomenclature based on structure observed within the palaeotaxa, would be more relevant. Comparisons of cell structures with previous work on palaeoenvironmental indicators was found to be possible. Fossil wood has two uses. Firstly, as a local environmental indicator, usually in conjunction with sedimentological data, assessing the rate and direction of water flow, types of depositional environments and localised floral assemblages. Secondly, as an indicator of regional climate. Within any one particular time period, comparisons between the cellular structures of wood found in different parts of south eastern Australia show gross changes in cell size, mean growth ring size and vessel size, which enabled generalisations about climate for each epoch in the Tertiary. Palaeoclimatic indicators from the wood concurred with previous climatic interpretations based on palynology and sedimentology. Cool conditions during the Palaeocene were clearly indicated by small cells and small growth rings which gradually increased throughout the remainder of the Tertiary. Several areas e.g., Dargo High Plains, where cold conditions existed in isolation could be clearly distinguished. This corresponds with the gradual northward movement of the Australian plate with consequent increasing temperatures on the mainland.

Rapid amphibian population declines and extinctions have occurred worldwide in recent decades, often in protected areas where no obvious human disturbance can be identified. Chytridiomycocis is an emerging infectious disease caused by Batrachochutrium dendrobatidis, a chytrid fungus that parasitizes the keratinized epidermis of post-metamorphic amphibians and the mouthparts of tadploes. Batrachochutrium dendrobatidis has been detected in over 200 amphibian species from five continents, and has been diagnosed in dead and dying frogs concurrent with population declines, extirpations and extinctions. Chytriiomycocis is thus considered a primary explanation for the global loss of amphibian biodiversity in recent decades.
Thesis (PhD Doctorate)
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
School of Environmental and Applied Sciences
Science, Environment, Engineering and Technology
Full Text

This thesis traces the story of Australian Jewish identity from the colonial period to the end of the 1920s. Anglo-Jews aligned themselves with ‘white Australia’, arguing that their Jewishness was merely a private trait. Moments of crisis in the 1890s and 1920s, prompted by the possible and actual migration of Eastern European Jews to Australia, threatened to destabilise the place Anglo-Jews had carved out in Australian society, and forced a renegotiation of what it meant to be Jewish in Australia. These moments demonstrate that despite being notionally accepted in Australia, the whiteness of Jews was never guaranteed. Drawing on newspapers and government records, this thesis argues that since their arrival in Australia, Jews have been ambivalently and ambiguously placed in relation to Australian constructions of whiteness. As a group notoriously hard to define, Jews are an important case study in an analysis of the discursive world of ‘white Australia’, presenting new questions that challenge existing binaries of ‘white’ and ‘coloured’.

Bedding plants are used extensively in many landscaping situations. The majority of bedding plants marketed commercially are exotic species with only limited propagation material of Australian species available. The objectives of this work was to assess Australian short—lived perennial species as bedding plants with particular reference to their ease of propagation from seed. An extensive survey of Eastern states Australian native annual and short lived perennial species has identified the following species as showing potential as bedding plants.

This thesis investigated aspects of plant recruitment across an altitudinal gradient of mountain tops in the Victorian Alps, Australia, and provides a baseline for the patterns and processes of alpine plant recruitment in the absence of large-scale disturbance. The patterns in alpine vegetation across the study sites were described in relation to abiotic environmental factors. Temperatures were lower and precipitation was higher at the high altitude sites. The vegetation did not differ significantly between the sites, although sites at low altitudes were shrubbier than those at high altitudes. Analysis of the soil seed bank revealed high mean densities of germinable seed (80 to 1400 seeds m-2) across the gradient of sites. The similarity between the seed bank samples and the standing vegetation was low (qualitative similarity: 0.08 to 0.2; quantitative similarity: 0.03 to 0.19). In laboratory germination experiments, I found rapid and substantial germination. Final percent germination was above 90% for most species. One species, Aciphylla glacialis, showed evidence of dormancy mechanisms. In subsequent experiments, I found that innate primary seed dormancy in this species could be broken with cold-wet stratification. There were no significant patterns in natural seedling recruitment across the altitudinal gradient. Similarities between the seedling flora and the standing vegetation were low (qualitative similarity: 0.18 to 0.45: quantitative similarity 0.04 to 0.09). Mean seedling density was best predicted by a combination of soil wilting point, altitude and plant litter. In some cases, seedling density was greater than 80 seedlings m-2. The relative importance of either negative (competitive) or positive (facilitative) interactions between seedlings with adjacent vegetation were investigated in relation to seed germination, seedling growth and seedling survival. Facilitative interactions were common at the higher altitude sites. At lower altitudes, facilitative and competitive interactions were common. Without close neighbours at high altitudes, seedlings were unlikely to survive into their second year. An understanding of plant recruitment can provide a useful basis for predicting species responses to large-scale disturbance and climate change.

Thesis (Ph.D.) -- La Trobe University, 2007.
Research. "A thesis submitted in total fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, Department of Botany, School of Life Sciences, Faculty of Science, Technology and Engineering, La Trobe University, Bundoora". Includes bibliographical references (leaves 173-187). Also available via the World Wide Web.

"Through a comprehensive literature review this project examines the necessary components of a laboratory chemical safety program, including requirements under the new hazardous substance regulations. It also examines, via a survey, the problems associated with the laboratory use of chemicals and with compliance with the new regulations. Finally the current situation in Australia and the approach research laboratories must take in the future to achieve compliance with the new regulatory package are reviewed."
Master of Applied Science

I used surgically implanted miniature radio-transmitters to conduct a broad behavioural ecology study of the eastern brownsnake, Pseudonaja textilis, a large (to 2 m), slender, fast-moving elapid snake responsible for most snakebite fatalities in Australia. In order to minimise trauma to the snake, I modified anaesthesia (use of nitrous oxide to relax the animal prior to induction of surgical—level anaesthesia with halothane); implantation techniques (reliance on “blunt” dissection rather than cutting of tissues after the initial incision; placement of antenna in the peritoneal cavity rather than subcutaneously; anchoring the transmitter in place to avoid slippage in a position anterior to the incision), and removal (use of a "disposable" silicon casing to eliminate problems associated with tissue adhesion to the antenna). Comparisons of changes in body mass of telemetered versus non— telemetered snakes indicated that the transmitters had no detectable effects on growth rate, even in a drought year when such effects might be most obvious. Encounters between humans and dangerously venomous snakes put both participants at serious risk, so the determinants of such encounters warrant attention. I set out to identify factors influencing the probability that a human walking in agricultural land near the town of Leeton (in the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area in south-eastem Australia) would come into close proximity to a brownsnake. My study area is typical of many of the agricultural landscapes occupied by B. texiis. Over a three-year period, I walked regular transects to quantify the number and rate of snake encounters, and the proportion of snakes above-ground which could be seen. The rate of encounters depended upon a series of factors, including season, time of day, habitat type, weather conditions (wind and air temperature) and shade of the observer’s clothing (light versus dark).

This study uses a very high resolution numerical weather prediction (NWP) model to investigate the complex structure and behaviour of cold fronts along the New South Wales coast during the warmer months of the year, the complex interaction between the wind flow and coastlines and elevated areas as well as the lee-trough effect, particularly the way it affects waters off the east coast of Tasmania, The study also investigates the utility of the higher resolution NWP model to better predict wind fields compared to a lower resolution model. The University of New South Wales very high resolution model (HIRES), nested in the Australian Bureau of Meteorology's coarse NWP model (GASP), was run at various horizontal resolutions (from 15 to 25km) in order to investigate the above-mentioned features. It was found to bave very good skill in resolving the features and was also found to be very accurate in the prediction of surface wind fields for various yacht race events out to at least four days ahead. It can be concluded that there is considerable skill in the ability of high-resolution NWP models such as HIRES, to predict the major features of the wind fields over the ocean out to several days ahead. Moreover, it was also able to more accurately simulate the complex structure of the summer-time cool change as it progressed along the NSW coast than the lower resolution model runs. The influence of coastlines, particularly ones with complex topographical features, on the wind flow was demonstrated to a limited extent throughout the study. Finally the following concepts were also verified as a result of the study: - air flow takes the path of least resistance - the shape of topography can help generate local turbulence - the orientation of the wind flow to a mountain range is important in determining turbulent effects. - under certain airflow and stability situations, standing wave activity and a lee trough can be observed in the lee of mountains, hills or even high coastal cliffs.

Migratory shorebirds inhabit the shorelines of rivers, wetlands, oceans and lakes, where they need to rest and feed during their non-breeding seasons to prepare for their annual migrations to breeding grounds in the Arctic. Along their flyways many non-breeding and stop-over sites are under pressure from coastal developments, disturbance, global sea level rise and water resource development. In this thesis I investigated how migratory shorebirds responded to habitat loss in the Hunter estuary, a non-breeding site in south-eastern Australia, and how they used remaining estuarine habitats. The Hunter estuary is a wetland of international importance but has a long history of modification from industrial and urban development which began in the late 1800s. Based on recent counts (2001-07), the Hunter estuary now only supports two species in internationally significant numbers (Eastern Curlews Numenius madagascariensis and Sharp-tailed Sandpipers Calidris acuminata) compared to seven species listed from earlier records (1970-90). Overall, I detected a 42% decline in total numbers of migratory shorebirds (1981 - 2007) in the estuary, with significant declines (44 - 83%) in four species. The tidal cycle was the main driver for the distribution of shorebirds in the Hunter estuary with most species feeding in exposed intertidal mudflats at low tide and being forced to rest at high tide. Eastern Curlews roosted on artificial structures and sandbanks during the day but at night they moved to flooded saltmarshes. Shallow water was important at the roost sites, as it provided a mechanism for cooling on warm days and for detecting predators at night. Vigilance behaviour made up 30 - 40% of Eastern Curlews roosting time, but vigilance increased by about 20% prior to their migration (Feb-Mar). Day roosting habitat was most limited during spring high tides and periods of high disturbance. Disturbance was significant at the day roosts (0.8 - 1.;7 hr-1), mostly from birds of prey, but Eastern Curlews spent longer in flight after being disturbed by people. The tidal period and tide type (neap or spring) determined shorebird distribution on intertidal mudflats. Intertidal mudflats in Fullerton Cove provided important feeding habitat for many species, but artificial mudflats impounded in the North Arm of the Hunter River extended foraging time for small shorebird species which fed until the tide forced their relocation to the main day roosts. These impoundments increased in importance for all shorebirds during neap cycles and one to three hours before high tide when the availability of intertidal mudflats was limited in the rest of the Hunter estuary. Overall, a high percentage (> 90%) of Bar-tailed Godwits Limosa lapponica foraged during low tides and 50% of godwits continued to forage up to three hours after low tide. Foraging Bar-tailed Godwits were most successful in mudflats in Fullerton Cove but prey availability was not uniform among mudflats. Saltmarshes provided major night roosting habitat and important feeding habitat for small shorebird species, including Sharp-tailed Sandpipers, which foraged in saltmarsh regardless of the tidal period. Generally, most shorebird species avoided saltmarshes with large stands of mangroves, preferring sites with open saltmarsh and tidal pools. Changes in attitudes towards wetlands management in the last three decades coincided with the formal protection and rehabilitation of shorebird habitat in the Hunter estuary. In 1995, culverts were removed to restore tidal flushing to estuarine wetlands on Ash Island, a highly modified wetland complex in the Hunter estuary.;Although high inter-annual variability in migratory shorebird populations made it difficult to detect short-term responses to wetland manipulation, long-term monitoring (1994-2007) indicated that increased tidal flushing had promoted mangrove expansion indirectly reducing habitat availability for shorebirds. Mangrove removal has the potential to restore this imbalance, but further studies are needed to support an adaptive management approach to managing shorebird habitat in the Hunter estuary. The cumulative loss and degradation of estuarine habitats in south-eastern Australia and other parts of the East Asian-Australasian flyway continue to threaten shorebird populations, but these impacts could be addressed through greater commitment to the protection and active management of shorebird roosting and feeding habitats in their non-breeding range.

Fish larvae in Australian waters have been studied progressively in the last 2-3 decades including the distribution and abundance of taxa, growth and age, their prey and predators. However, the effect of nutrient limitation on ichthyoplankton is unstudied, particularly in the oligotrophic Australian waters. My study was aimed to examine the effect of natural or anthropogenic nutrients on the abundance, distribution, growth and condition of fish larvae along-shore of the NSW coast (latitude 30-34S), where the East Australian Current departs the NSW coast and generates local upwelling of cool nutrient-rich water. This study shows no significant difference in the total abundance or diversity of either larval fishes amongst the 112 taxa (111 families and 1 order), among regions within or upstream of the upwelling. However in both months, there were distinctive ichthyoplankton assemblages at the family level. The Carangidae, Labridae, Lutjanidae, Microcanthidae, Myctophidae and Scombridae were more abundant in the EAC or oceanic water masses, while the Callionymidae, Clupeidae, Platycephalidae, Sillaginidae and Terapontidae were mostly found in the surface or deep upwelled/uplifted water masses. This pattern is observed in other ichthyoplankton studies and may be a general and useful method to determine mixing of water masses. Larvae of silver trevally (Pseudocaranx dentex) and yellowtail scad (Trachurus novaezelandiae) were generally larger and less abundant in the topographically induced upwelling region, than north of the region in pre-upwelled conditions of the East Australian Current. Both species were mostly at the preflexion stage (less than 4.3 mm in body length and less than 10 days old) in the pre-upwelled conditions, particularly during November, and proportionally more larger and older larvae in the upwelled waters (mostly post-flexion, greater than 4.3 mm in body length and greater than 10 days old). Ages from sagittal otoliths ranged from 2-25 increments (~days) and exhibited linear growth for both species and months over the size range (3-15 mm standard length). The otolith radius-length relationship and the growth rates were similar between species and months, despite the 3-4C difference between months. Overall growth rates of the younger larvae were uniform throughout the entire sampling area (0.5-0.6 mm.d-1), while older larvae grew significantly faster in the upwelled water (0.41 mm.d-1) compared to the non-upwelled conditions (0.34 mm.d-1). Both species tended to be depleted in 13C in the upwelling region (from ???18.5 to ???19.0), consistent with expected ratios from deeper water, whereas the 15N composition tended to increase in Pseudocaranx, but decrease in Trachurus indicating different diets and possibly trophic level. The early life history of both species indicates spawning in pre-upwelled waters, but larval transport into upwelled waters is necessary for faster growth in the post-flexion stage. The assemblage of larval fishes did differ between the upwelled region and a region south of Sydney???s deepwater outfalls, but the difference was ascribed to a latitudinal effect and the EAC. Both larval carangids were enriched in 15N, possibly due to the enriched dissolved organic matter of primary treated sewage. In summary, this study found that the larval fish community can provide a biological means to trace water masses, and estimate their degree of mixing. Remarkably there was no significant effect of upwelling or sewage addition to the abundance or diversity of larval fish, in the nutrient poor waters of the East Australian Current. Larval carangids and pilchards were abundant in late spring off northern NSW, and their early life histories were inferred. Both larval carangid species seem to be spawned in the EAC waters, but as post-flexion larvae grew faster in the upwelled zone. Pre-flexion (less than 10 day old) larval carangids of both genera indicated spawning in the EAC, and the rarer post-flexion (greater than 10 days old) carangids grew faster in the upwelled waters. Here, both genera had stable isotope signatures characteristic of upwelled waters for carbon, but had different nitrogen signatures, indicative of different diets and trophic level status. Larval pilchards actually grew more slowly in the upwelling region, as observed in coastal waters off Japan, and their nursery grounds may be further offshore in the Tasman Front, analogous to their early life history in the Kuroshio Extension.

This research explores the experiences and insights of ten Middle Eastern Gulf women as they cross international borders to study in Australian universities. The literature indicates that international students in Australia establish their identity within the context of their overseas existence. This is particularly important as Muslims may feel they are being placed in a precarious situation due to, more often than not, terrorism being linked to Islam. Also, when Muslim women wear Islamic or traditional attire, the general public tends to look upon them with curiosity. With this in mind, the complex and changed contexts faced by ten Middle Eastern Gulf female post-graduate students are investigated using qualitative research methods. Utilising a grounded theory approach to interpret data and identify themes from two online questionnaires and personal interviews, individual portraits are created to illuminate their experiences. The research findings reveal new knowledge indicating that education is a structured mechanism for the participants, resulting in the creation of a new hybrid self as a key instrument for survival. This enables them to better understand cultural contexts and barriers arising from class, tradition, religion and learning. The participants indicate that a two-way agreement between educators and learners is paramount to a smooth transition into the Australian education system and a positive return to their home communities.

Pisolithus is an important ectomycorrhizal genus world-wide, however to date we remain largely ignorant of the genetic and functional variation that exists within isolates of this genus. Fifty-three isolates of Pisolithus were obtained from various locations in central and eastern Australia and genetic variation within the isolates was assessed using ITS-RFLP and ITS sequencing analyses. RFLP analysis initially grouped the isolates into eight RFLP types. Neighbour-joining analysis of ITS sequences with Pisolithus ITS sequences available in databases clustered the majority of isolates into four groups within two major clades, each comprising isolates of similar basidiospre characteristics. Most Australian isolates correspond with recent provisional descriptions of P. albus or P. marmoratus. One isolate (LJ30) had low sequence identity (61.6-78.0%) to the other isolates and probably represents a separate undescribed Australian species. Significant intraspecific variation was observed in ITS-RFLP profiles for the putative P. albus isolates, suggesting that the sole use of RFLP analysis in diversity assessment may over-estimate Pisolithus species richness. Investigations were also initiated to identify if a relationship exists between genetic and physiological diversity in Australian Pisolithus. It is, however, clear that extensive physiological variation exists in Australian Pisolithus isolates. The size and distribution of genets of Australian Pisolithus species I and II ( putative P. albus and P. marmoratus) was also assessed using microsatellite-primed PCR to gain a better understanding of the likely distribution of underground mycelial networks and possible reproduction strategies in native soils. The data demonstrate that both species have the ability to be long-lived and extend for significant distances in native soils in undisturbed conditions. The field site for Pisolithus species I, however, also contained of a large number of small individuals suggesting that this species may employ a life-history strategy combining r-, C and S characteristics depending on local soil conditions
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Intermittent streams that cease to flow for some period of most years are prevalent across global river networks. Their spatial extent is projected to increase in regions experiencing drying trends related to climate change and water extraction for human uses. Intermittent streams sustain biodiversity by hosting a unique combination of aquatic, amphibious, and terrestrial assemblages as a result of their wet and dry phases. Compared to perennial streams, the ecological values of intermittent streams are not well-appreciated or understood, and thus intermittent streams are less commonly incorporated into policy, management, and regulatory decisions. As research on intermittent streams is increasing, there have been strident calls for better recognition and protection of intermittent streams. This thesis aims to develop new methods to address some key issues related to spatio-temporal dynamics and hydro-ecology of intermittent streams, with a focus on eastern Australia. River channel drying caused by intermittent stream flow is a widely-recognised factor shaping stream ecosystems. There is a strong need to quantify spatio-temporal variations in the hydrology of intermittent streams over broad spatial scales to inform ecological understanding and management. This is challenging because observational stream gauges are sparsely distributed and provide only point estimates of discharge. In this study, I developed models to simulate monthly discharge across river catchments. Due to the common issue of over-estimating low flows in discharge simulations, I also identified appropriate zero flow thresholds to mitigate this uncertainty. I quantified spatial and temporal patterns of flow intermittency for every stream segment within river networks of five major catchments in south-eastern Queensland (SEQ), eastern Australia. Results showed that the temporal dynamics of flow intermittency varied dramatically inter-annually over the period of 1900-2016, with the proportion of intermittent streams ranging in length from 3 % to nearly 100% of river networks, but there was no evidence of an increasing trend towards flow intermittency over this period. This approach to generating spatially explicit and catchment-wide estimates of streamflow intermittency can facilitate improved ecological understanding and management of intermittent streams. Compared with monthly discharge simulations, daily discharge simulations can provide more detailed representation of the dynamic aspects of hydrological processes and potentially enables more ecologically relevant characterisation of hydrology. However, models of daily stream flow are more complex and often need to take river routing processes into account. I developed models to simulate daily stream flows for contiguous sub-catchments across entire river networks in two hydro-climatically distinctive regions (SEQ vs. the Tamar River II catchment). I evaluated the models in terms of their ability to represent different ecologically important components of flow regime and quantified environmental correlates of differences in model accuracy within and between regions. The models showed generally good performance in both regions. However, average- and high flows were better predicted than low flows in SEQ because it is difficult to represent climate and hydrogeological processes influencing the low-flow part of the hydrograph. Spatial variation in flow characteristics revealed the highly dynamic nature of flow permanence in space and time, with intermittent flows affecting between 29% and 80% of the river network over the period of 1911-2017. I discuss the pros and cons of the applications of modelled monthly and daily flows, and conclude that the appropriate choice of modelling time step depends on the primary objectives of the research. The monthly time-step is suitable for quantifying ecologically relevant spatial and temporal variations in streamflow intermittency, but may be insufficient for studies aimed at quantifying ecological responses to short term flow events. The hydrological variability of intermittent streams poses challenges for resident aquatic biota which require access to permanent surface water-bodies to persist during dry spells and to recolonise suitable habitats when flows resume. However, research to quantify the dynamics and environmental determinants of variation in surface water extent is usually conducted over limited spatial and/or temporal extents. One of the biggest barriers to this kind of research is the difficulty in obtaining observed data of surface water extent across river networks. In this study, I demonstrated a newly-developed field method for rapid surface water assessment, and then developed predictive models relating observed water extent to environmental attributes at 241 surveyed stream segments in SEQ. I used the models to predict daily variations in surface water dynamics throughout entire river networks over the past century, based on available long-term environmental attributes. Descriptors of surface water extent could be accurately modelled, with good internal and external validation performance. Long-term variations in surface water extent were highly dynamic through space and time, although the overall length of river networks with surface water remained relatively stable from year to year. This study provides valuable insights into the potential priority conservation areas for aquatic biota across the study region. Systematic conservation prioritisation methods are increasingly being applied to freshwater ecosystems to identify candidate areas for ecosystem management and biodiversity protection. However, applications with emphasis on intermittent streams are scarce. The hydrological variability of intermittent streams means that the spatial distribution of dry season aquatic refuges within river networks and the temporal dynamics of hydrological connectivity between them are critical for the persistence of aquatic biodiversity. I developed a new approach to incorporating both surface water persistence and hydrological connectivity into systematic conservation prioritisation in intermittent streams. I also included multiple freshwater fish species distributions as explicit targets for habitat prioritisation, and incorporated estimates of their relative mobility to maximise potentially re-colonisable stream length from refuges. Compared with the situation without mobility, the inclusion of species mobility could significantly reduce the number of aquatic refuges required to meet the set conservation targets. High priority aquatic refuges were widely distributed across the study river networks, encompassing streams in various orders from main stems to headwaters. The research can help enhance both the resistance and resilience of freshwater biodiversity in intermittent stream ecosystems. The thesis concludes with practical learnings from these modelling studies for intermittent stream research and management, namely, 1) that discharge simulations (monthly or daily) throughout river networks confirmed the prevalence of intermittent streams and revealed the highly dynamic nature of flow intermittency over space and time; 2) that spatial and temporal dynamics of surface water availability within stream reaches can be modelled through the combination of observed surface water extent with long-term environmental attributes; and 3) that systematic prioritisation of aquatic refuges by incorporating both surface water persistence and hydrological connectivity enables to efficiently meet conservation targets for species representation and cost-effective conservation management. The thesis also concludes with future challenges and directions for intermittent stream research.
Thesis (PhD Doctorate)
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
School of Environment and Sc
Science, Environment, Engineering and Technology
Full Text

The spider infraorder Mygalomorphae includes the funnel-web spiders, tarantulas, trapdoor spiders and their kin. Because of their particular life history characteristics, systematic revisions of mygalomorph taxa are fundamentally informative and of broader biological interest, but also a matter of conservation priority. Mygalomorph spiders are relatively long-lived, usually with limited dispersal abilities, high habitat specificity, and a long historical presence in areas relative to landscape processes. These characteristics lead to high levels of speciation and local endemism in many mygalomorph lineages, and a build-up of genetic structure between and within species at fine spatial scales. From the perspective of a researcher, high levels of genetic structure and speciation make mygalomorph lineages ideal for investigating biogeographic history and speciation processes. From a conservation perspective, local endemism, habitat specificity and low dispersal ability mean that mygalomorph populations (and potentially species) are sensitive to habitat modification, and have little ability to disperse from, or recolonise, affected areas. In the context of a biodiversity crisis, and hindered by ‘impediments’ to systematics and taxonomy, systematists must allocate their time and efforts carefully. Given their inherent vulnerability and the value of research on mygalomorph taxa, revisions of poorly known elements of this fauna are both urgent and of evolutionary importance. Intergeneric relationships within the spiny trapdoor spiders of Australasia (Idiopidae: Arbanitinae) were recently stabilised. This provided a foundation for targeted work into genera within the subfamily, many of which had never received substantial systematic attention. Prior to my project, only seven species of golden trapdoor spider (tribe Euoplini, previously all in the genus Euoplos) had been described from eastern Australia, despite the genus spanning the length and breadth of the eastern mesic zone. The genus was seen as a conservation priority because it is highly diverse in south-eastern Queensland, Australia, a region where urban development (sub-coastal) and agricultural development (inland) threaten to encroach on the natural remnants where undescribed species occur. Furthermore, undocumented variability in morphology and burrow entrance structure in the genus presented a valuable opportunity to study morphology and behavioural evolution in mygalomorph spiders. In this thesis, I compare and integrate morphological data, behavioural data (burrow entrance type) and molecular data in order to: infer the first robust phylogeny of the genus Euoplos; investigate the phylogenetic signal of morphology and burrow entrance architecture to generate evolutionary hypotheses of broader relevance to mygalomorph systematics; and revise select lineages in the genus based on their conservation priority. In Chapter 2, I use morphological data to guide targeted sampling of Euoplos from eastern Australia, before generating the first comprehensive molecular phylogeny for the genus. Male morphology and burrow entrance architecture are then compared with the molecular phylogeny to reveal the existence of two widespread, sympatric lineages which differ in their burrow entrance structure and male morphology: the ‘wafer-door’ lineage and the ‘plug-door/palisade’ lineage. I also identify a taxonomic error in the literature, where males belonging to a wafer-door species were incorrectly linked with females belonging to a sympatric species in the plug-door/palisade lineage. In chapter 3, I present a systematic revision of a group of Euoplos which were recovered as a clade in Chapter 2, and which construct remarkable ‘palisade’ type burrow entrances. Revision of the group was seen as urgent because all species have very small natural ranges and occur in remnant rainforest habitats within heavily modified landscapes. This revision results in the description of four new species, and I was also able to identify species-specific differences in burrow entrance architecture, providing a means of non-intrusive species identification. In Chapter 4, all available data are integrated into a total-evidence phylogenetic analysis of the entire tribe Euoplini. Ancestral state reconstruction is used to demonstrate how morphological and behavioural (burrow entrance architecture) characters relate to topology. This chapter results in the reclassification of the tribe, with two new genera erected: Cryptoforis (wafer-door lineage) and Narellea (a single, divergent species). This chapter also highlights the utility of both male and female morphology for phylogenetic and taxonomic studies on mygalomorph spiders, and provides morphological characters and a phylogenetic framework for future integrative phylogenetics/taxonomy on the Idiopidae and other mygalomorph groups. Chapter 5 consists of a complete taxonomic synopsis of the newly-recognised genus Cryptoforis. Revision of this new genus was seen as a priority due to the cryptic nature of the wafer-door burrows they create, and due to the fact that they were previously undocumented from mainland Australia. Numerous species also appear to be short-range endemics, restricted to remnant or relictual habitats in eastern Australia. In total, 16 species are described in the genus. In summary, my project is a comprehensive systematic treatment of the golden trapdoor spiders (tribe Euoplini) of Australia, revealing a diverse assemblage of mygalomorph spiders in multiple evolutionary lineages. It presents new data on phylogenetic relationships, morphology, and behaviour in the tribe. Immediate practical outcomes include a new generic classification of the tribe which more accurately represents the diversity contained within it, a full revision of the new genus Cryptoforis, and a targeted revision of the short-range endemic palisade-building Euoplos from south-eastern Queensland. My thesis demonstrates the strength of a ‘holistic’ total-evidence systematic approach, whereby different data types are iteratively compared and integrated, and in particular, the utility of this approach to understanding the taxonomy and evolution of poorly known mygalomorph taxa.
Thesis (PhD Doctorate)
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
School of Environment and Sc
School of Environment and Sc
Science, Environment, Engineering and Technology
Full Text

Insects are well recognised as being the major contributor to global biodiversity, and for their critical involvement in many biotic interactions. Most of the insect diversity is found in tropical rainforests. However, these forests are threatened by high rates of clearing and the subsequent fragmentation of remaining habitat. The effects on biota, particularly insects, are poorly understood as are the mechanisms mediating faunal changes. Reforestation could potentially alleviate some of the deleterious effects of forest loss and fragmentation. However, because reforestation is a relatively new endeavour, it is little known just how much insect biodiversity can be supported by reforestation and what factors influence insect colonisation. These issues were investigated in the Atherton Tablelands of north-eastern Australia, a landscape whose rainforest has been heavily cleared and fragmented over the last 80 years, but is also the focus of reforestation efforts. To quantify the effects of rainforest loss and fragmentation, pasture sites were compared with small rainforest fragments, and with the edges and interiors of large rainforest fragments (24 sites in total). Sites with replanted rainforest (planted with a high diversity of plants) were also included. These varied in their age (2-17 yrs) and their distance (0-4.5 km) from existing rainforest (24 sites in total). Another set of reforested sites was also studied but these differed in their planting style (number of plant species, spacing etc). This second set of sites was located in two regions: the Atherton Tablelands (50 sites), and in the subtropics of eastern Australia (54 sites). At each site, beetle assemblages were surveyed using methods that sample beetles near the ground (four ground-based flight interception traps in the first set of sites and ten pitfall traps in the second set of sites), and then the assemblages among site-types were compared. Over 32,000 beetles were caught and identified to the level of family, and of these, 15,206 were identified further to the level of species. Very few beetle species were present in pasture, suggesting that converting rainforest into pasture has a very strong negative effect on beetle diversity and species composition. Irrespective of rainforest fragment size, beetle species composition in drier rainforest habitats was different from that of moister rainforest. Beetle species composition also differed between small remnants and interior rainforest: drier-associated species were more abundant in small remnants, whereas wetter-associated species were more abundant in interiors. This pattern can be best attributed to a fragmentation effect mediated by differences in microclimate. With the exception of differences between rainforest and pasture, these results were generally not observed among beetle assemblages identified to coarser taxonomic groups (family, feeding guild, and body size). Among replanted rainforest, older sites and those adjacent to rainforest had a more rainforest-like beetle species composition. However, even the closer and older sites had a substantially lower abundance and richness of rainforest-associated beetles than did rainforest. Age effects were generally stronger than distance effects. Beetle assemblage similarity to rainforest was more strongly correlated with structural similarity to rainforest than with site age or distance from rainforest. Thus the use of revegetation techniques which lead to more rainforest-like structural conditions appears to be of over-riding importance in catalysing the rapid acquisition of rainforest beetle assemblages in the initial stages of restoration. Nevertheless, not all beetle species were equally affected by the factors tested. Large-bodied beetle species (>5 mm) were more strongly influenced by distance than small-bodied species (<5 mm), suggesting that small-bodied species are better dispersers, and thus are amongst the first to colonise new habitats. Spatial ubiquity in rainforest was not a good predictor of a species' dispersal ability. Interestingly, fewer of the broader groups (family, feeding guild, and body size) showed the response to distance evident at the species level although they showed differences between reforested sites differing in age, and between reforested and reference site-types. Therefore, these results and those from the fragmentation study suggest that information at the species level is more sensitive to environmental change than data identified to a coarser level of taxonomy or grouped according to feeding ecology or body size. For the pitfall-trapped beetles in the second reforested site network, beetle assemblages in all styles of reforestation were intermediate in species composition between pasture and rainforest. The similarity of beetle assemblages to intact rainforest increased with the age and structural complexity of reforested sites, although again structural complexity appeared to be of overriding importance. This study has shown that even small patches of rainforest and reforested areas can support diverse rainforest-dependent beetle assemblages. A range of factors influence the development of beetle assemblages in reforested sites although not all species are equally affected. However, even structurally complex reforested sites cannot provide a short- or medium-term substitute for the retention of intact rainforest.
Thesis (PhD Doctorate)
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Australian School of Environmental Studies
Faculty of Environmental Studies
Full Text

This thesis demonstrates how sustainable development may embrace values of the Ecological Worldview to reverse negative trends associated with climate change and environmental degradation. Instrumental knowledge is developed where complex theoretical aspects of the Ecological Worldview are applied in the systematic development of regenerative design methodologies bearing implications for the design of built environment. A framework is conceptualised for Design Methodology, onto which the values of the Ecological Worldview are mapped. A single iteration of the Design Methodology is run, to output a Benchmark Design Strategy which demonstrates range of outcomes for regenerative design in Eastern Australian subtropical regions.

We have used the geodynamic modelling software CitcomS 3.0 to model the surface evolution of Australia since 140 Ma and constrain the location of the Cretaceous aged subduction zone that paralleled its eastern margin. Australia’s palaeogeography was profoundly affected by mantle convection processes during the Cretaceous. Eastward passage of the Australian plate over subducted slab material induced negative dynamic topography in eastern Australia, causing widespread time-dependent subsidence and formation of a vast epeiric sea during a eustatic sea-level low. Although there exists a considerable amount of geological evidence for active convergence between Australia and the palaeo-Pacific at this time, the exact location of the subduction zone has remained elusive. To constrain the location of subduction we tested two end-member models, one with the subduction zone directly adjacent to the continent, and an alternative model with subduction translated 23° east. Our forward geodynamic models incorporate a rheological model for the mantle and crust, plate motions since 140 Ma and evolving plate boundaries, implemented in the GPlates software. While mantle rheology affects the magnitude of surface vertical motions, the timing of uplift and subsidence depends critically on plate kinematic reconstructions and plate boundary geometries. Tectonic subsidence analysis using the backstrippping method was performed on 42 wells from the Eromanga and Surat basins in eastern Australia. This revealed Cretaceous tectonic subsidence trends with which to compare our modelled dynamic topography. Simulations with subduction proximal to the active continental margin resulted in accelerated basin subsidence delayed by 20 Myr compared with these tectonic subsidence data. However this timing offset was reconciled when subduction was shifted eastward. Comparisons between whole mantle seismic tomography images and equivalent model temperature cross-sections further validate our proposed eastward shift in subduction. Finally an absence of subduction zone volcanism along Australia’s east coast in the Early Cretaceous supports our conclusion that a back-arc basin existed east of Australia during the Cretaceous. Our models further allowed us to test alternative Tertiary plate boundary geometries east of Australia, in particular whether or not the proposed short-lived mid-Tertiary eastward dipping "New Caledonia subduction zone" may have been responsible for a prominent fast shear wave anomaly at ~1100 km depth beneath the Tasman Sea. Our models suggest that post 45 Ma westward dipping subduction along the Tonga-Kermadec Trench may have produced the slab material mapped by mantle tomography models in the lower mantle underneath the Tasman Sea. An additional eastward dipping subduction zone does not appear to be required by the tomographic images, as proposed previously.

To potentially better identify variability in sediment yields under a range of forest management and climatic scenarios at the catchment scale, alternative approaches by modelling sediment yields were utilised in this research using: (1) a spatially distributed calibrated algorithm of soil loss coupled with sediment delivery ratio (SDR) functions; (2) linear regression models between sampling suspended sediment concentrations and corresponding instantaneous variables of streamflow and in-stream turbidity; and (3) a physically-based SWAT model. Four catchments in Kangaroo River State forest, northern NSW were assessed for annual changes in sediment yields. Two catchments were selectively logged in 2007 while the two other sites remained undisturbed. Instantaneous changes in streamflow and suspended sediment constituents were systematically monitored between 2001 and 2009 as part of native forest management activities in the forested catchments. In addition, water samples were collected by autosamplers to cover a wide range of water constituent variability. According to the different methods applied in this research, rainfall intensity had the most significant influence on sediment delivery, streamflow and sediment yields at channel outlets in all catchments, with steeply sloping areas contributing large amounts of sediment during moderate and high rainfall years in 2007 and 2009. Slope gradient was found to contribute substantially to the spatial variability of soil loss estimation across the catchments. The impact of vegetation removal was minimal even during high rainfall conditions in the 2007 logging year. It is concluded that the current scenario of single-tree selection logging utilised in the study area is an acceptable and environmentally sound land management strategy for preservation of soil and water resources.

Pisolithus is an important ectomycorrhizal genus world-wide, however to date we remain largely ignorant of the genetic and functional variation that exists within isolates of this genus. Fifty-three isolates of Pisolithus were obtained from various locations in central and eastern Australia and genetic variation within the isolates was assessed using ITS-RFLP and ITS sequencing analyses. RFLP analysis initially grouped the isolates into eight RFLP types. Neighbour-joining analysis of ITS sequences with Pisolithus ITS sequences available in databases clustered the majority of isolates into four groups within two major clades, each comprising isolates of similar basidiospre characteristics. Most Australian isolates correspond with recent provisional descriptions of P. albus or P. marmoratus. One isolate (LJ30) had low sequence identity (61.6-78.0%) to the other isolates and probably represents a separate undescribed Australian species. Significant intraspecific variation was observed in ITS-RFLP profiles for the putative P. albus isolates, suggesting that the sole use of RFLP analysis in diversity assessment may over-estimate Pisolithus species richness. Investigations were also initiated to identify if a relationship exists between genetic and physiological diversity in Australian Pisolithus. It is, however, clear that extensive physiological variation exists in Australian Pisolithus isolates. The size and distribution of genets of Australian Pisolithus species I and II ( putative P. albus and P. marmoratus) was also assessed using microsatellite-primed PCR to gain a better understanding of the likely distribution of underground mycelial networks and possible reproduction strategies in native soils. The data demonstrate that both species have the ability to be long-lived and extend for significant distances in native soils in undisturbed conditions. The field site for Pisolithus species I, however, also contained of a large number of small individuals suggesting that this species may employ a life-history strategy combining r-, C and S characteristics depending on local soil conditions

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Western Sydney, 2000.
"Thesis submitted in accordance with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, School of Science, University of Western Sydney (Nepean)." "October 2000." Bibliography : leaves 143-179.

Over the past thirty years, price relativities and technological development have motivated an increase in the area of land allocated to cropping, as opposed to pasture production, throughout the central wheat belt of Western Australia. Nevertheless, reducing the proportion of pasture in these rotations has challenged the future productivity of farming systems in this area. First, the frequent application of selective herbicides for weed control in extended cropping rotations has promoted the development of herbicide resistance in a number of major agricultural weeds. Second, the primary use of annual plants has promoted the development of soil salinisation by allowing a significant proportion of rainfall to recharge saline water tables. The inclusion of perennial pasture phases between extended periods of cropping may mitigate or delay these constraints to production through (a) allowing the use of costeffective forms of non-selective weed control, and (b) through creating a buffer of dry soil that absorbs leakage occurring beneath subsequent crops. This study consequently explores the value of including perennial pasture phases in dryland agricultural systems in the eastern-central wheat belt of Western Australia, accounting for benefits related to herbicide resistance and water table management. A novel computational algorithm for the solution of multiple-phase optimal control problems is developed and used to conduct a conceptual analysis of the value of lucerne (Medicago sativa L.) pasture for managing annual ryegrass (Lolium rigidum Gaudin), the primary weed in wheat belt cropping systems. The competitiveness and fecundity of annual ryegrass provide strong economic incentives to maintain a low weed population, irrespective of herbicide-resistance status. Consequently, the ineffectiveness of selective herbicides primarily reduces the profitability of cropping by motivating the adoption of more costly non-selective forms of weed control. The inclusion of lucerne in land-use rotations is only optimal in the presence of severe herbicide resistance given (a) the low efficiency of alternative weed-management practices available during the pasture phase, relative to selective-herbicide application; (b) the significant cost of establishing this perennial pasture; and (c) the high relative profitability of cereal production in the absence of resistance. The value of lucerne, relative to annual pastures, for weed management is explored in greater detail through the use of compressed annealing to optimise a sophisticated simulation model. The profitability of candidate rotations is also manipulated to account for the long-term production losses accruing to the recharge of saline groundwaters that occurs beneath them. Sequences incorporating lucerne are only more profitable than those that include annual pasture at the standard set of parameter values if (a) annual ryegrass is resistant to all selective herbicides, (b) the water table is so shallow (approximately less than 3.5 m deep) that frequent rotation with perennials is required to avert soil salinisation, or (c) sheep production is highly profitable. The value of perennial pasture is sufficient under these circumstances to overcome its high establishment cost. Consistent with intuition, these benefits are reinforced by lower discount rates and higher rates of leakage occurring beneath annual-based systems. Formulation of an effective communication strategy to report these results to producers is justified given the complexity involved in determining the true magnitude of these intertemporal benefits through alternative means, such as field trials.

Wind erosion is widespread across the world’s drylands and includes the arid and semi-arid rangelands of Australia. An estimated 110 Mt of dust is eroded by wind from the Australian land surface each year, most of which originates from the arid and semi-arid rangelands. Livestock production is known to increase the susceptibility of the rangelands to wind erosion, and produce accelerated erosion, by reducing vegetation cover and modifying surface soil stability. Extended episodes of wind erosion have been reportedly caused by overgrazing notably in Australia in the 1940’s and 1960s. However, research is yet to fully understand and quantify the impacts of pastoral activities on the wind erosion of the rangelands. Better understanding of the impact of pastoral managements (e.g. stocking rates, land conditions) on wind erosion and information on how these impacts change through time and space are required. This should offer the possibility to better understand and estimate the impact of pastoral activities on wind erosion and provide information to land managers in order to reduce grazing impacts on wind erosion.
Thesis (PhD Doctorate)
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Griffith School of Environment
Science, Environment, Engineering and Technology
Full Text

Several late Pleistocene fossil localities in the Kings Creek catchment, Darling Downs, southeastern Queensland, Australia, were examined in detail to establish an accurate, dated palaeoecological record for the region, and to test human versus climate change megafauna extinction hypotheses. Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS 14C) and U/Th dating confirm that the deposits are late Pleistocene in age, but the dates obtained from the two methods are not in agreement. Fluvial depositional accumulation processes in the catchment reflect both high-energy channel and low-energy episodic overbank deposition. The most striking taphonomic observations for vertebrates in the deposits include: 1) low representation of post-cranial elements; 2) high degree of bone breakage; 3) variable abrasion but most identifiable bone elements with low to moderate degree of abrasion; 4) low rates of bone weathering; 5) low degree of carnivore bone modification; and 6) low degree of articulated or associated specimens. Collectively, those data suggest that the material was transported into the deposit from the surrounding proximal floodplain and that the assemblages reflect hydraulic sorting. A multifaceted palaeoecological investigation revealed significant habitat change between superposed assemblages of site QML796. The basal fossiliferous unit contained species that indicate the presence of a mosaic of habitats including riparian vegetation, vine thickets, scrubland, open and closed woodlands, and open grasslands during the late Pleistocene. Those woody and scrubby habitats contracted over the period of deposition so that by the time of deposition of the youngest horizon, the creek sampled a more open type environment. Sequential faunal horizons show a step-wise decrease in taxonomic diversity that cannot be explained by sampling or taphonomic bias. The decreasing diversity includes loss of some, but not all, megafauna and is consistent with a progressive local loss of megafauna in the catchment over an extended interval of time. Collectively, those data are consistent with a climatic cause of megafauna extinction, and no specific evidence was found to support human involvement in the local extinctions. Better dating of the deposits is critically important, as a secure chronology would have significant implications regarding the continent-wide extinction of the Australian megafauna.

Several late Pleistocene fossil localities in the Kings Creek catchment, Darling Downs, southeastern Queensland, Australia, were examined in detail to establish an accurate, dated palaeoecological record for the region, and to test human versus climate change megafauna extinction hypotheses. Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS 14C) and U/Th dating confirm that the deposits are late Pleistocene in age, but the dates obtained from the two methods are not in agreement. Fluvial depositional accumulation processes in the catchment reflect both high-energy channel and low-energy episodic overbank deposition. The most striking taphonomic observations for vertebrates in the deposits include: 1) low representation of post-cranial elements; 2) high degree of bone breakage; 3) variable abrasion but most identifiable bone elements with low to moderate degree of abrasion; 4) low rates of bone weathering; 5) low degree of carnivore bone modification; and 6) low degree of articulated or associated specimens. Collectively, those data suggest that the material was transported into the deposit from the surrounding proximal floodplain and that the assemblages reflect hydraulic sorting. A multifaceted palaeoecological investigation revealed significant habitat change between superposed assemblages of site QML796. The basal fossiliferous unit contained species that indicate the presence of a mosaic of habitats including riparian vegetation, vine thickets, scrubland, open and closed woodlands, and open grasslands during the late Pleistocene. Those woody and scrubby habitats contracted over the period of deposition so that by the time of deposition of the youngest horizon, the creek sampled a more open type environment. Sequential faunal horizons show a step-wise decrease in taxonomic diversity that cannot be explained by sampling or taphonomic bias. The decreasing diversity includes loss of some, but not all, megafauna and is consistent with a progressive local loss of megafauna in the catchment over an extended interval of time. Collectively, those data are consistent with a climatic cause of megafauna extinction, and no specific evidence was found to support human involvement in the local extinctions. Better dating of the deposits is critically important, as a secure chronology would have significant implications regarding the continent-wide extinction of the Australian megafauna.

The Russian Orthodox community is a relatively small and little known group in Australian society, however, the history of the Russian presence in Australia goes back to 1809. As the Russian community includes a number of groups, both Christian and non-Christian, it would not be feasible to undertake a complete review of all aspects of the community and consequently, this work limits itself in scope to the Russian Orthodox community. The thesis broadly chronicles the development of the Russian community as it struggles to become a viable partner in Australia's multicultural society. Many never before published documents have been researched and hitherto closed archives in Russia have been accessed. To facilitate this research the author travelled to Russia, the United States and a number of European centres to study the archives of pre-Soviet Russian communities. Furthermore, the archives and publications of the Australian and New Zealand Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church have been used extensively. The thesis notes the development of Australian-Russian relations as contacts with Imperial Russian naval and scientific ships visiting the colonies increase during the 1800's and traces this relationship into the twentieth century. With the appearance of a Russian community in the nineteenth century, attempts were made to establish the Russian Orthodox Church on Australian soil. However, this did not eventuate until the arrival of a number of groups of Russian refugees after the Revolution of 1917 and the Civil War (1918-1922). As a consequence of Australia's 'Populate or Perish' policy following the Second World War, the numbers of Russian and other Orthodox Slavic displaced persons arriving in this country grew to such an extent that the Russian Church was able to establish a diocese in Australia, and later in New Zealand.;The thesis then divides the history of the Russian Orthodox presence into chapters dealing with the administrative epochs of each of the ruling bishops. This has proven to be a suitable matrix for study as each period has its own distinct personalities and issues. The successes, tribulations and challengers of the Church in Australia are chronicled up to the end of the twentieth century. However, a further chapter deals with the issue of the Church's prospects in Australia and its relevance to future generations of Russian Orthodox people. As the history of the Russians in this country has received little attention in the past, this work gives a broad spectrum of the issues, people and events associated with the Russian community and society at large, whilst opening up new opportunities for further research.

In this thesis I present and test a methodology for developing a stand scale index of structural complexity. If properly designed such an index can act as a summary variable for a larger set of stand structural attributes, providing a means of ranking stands in terms of their structural complexity, and by association, their biodiversity and vegetation condition. This type of index can also facilitate the use of alternative policy instruments for biodiversity conservation, such as mitigation banking, auctions and offsets, that rely on a common currency – the index value – that can be compared or traded between sites. My intention was to establish a clear and documentable methodology for developing a stand scale index of structural complexity, and to test this methodology using data from real stands.¶ As a starting point, I reviewed the literature concerning forest and woodland structure and found there was no clear definition of stand structural complexity, or definitive suite of structural attributes for characterising it. To address this issue, I defined stand structural complexity as a combined measure of the number of different structural attributes present in a stand, and the relative abundance of each of these attributes. This was analogous to approaches that have quantified diversity in terms of the abundance and richness of elements. It was also concluded from the review, that stand structural complexity should be viewed as a relative, rather than absolute concept, because the potential levels of different structural attributes are bound within certain limits determined by the inherent characteristics of the site in question, and the biota of the particular community will have evolved to reflect this range of variation. This implied that vegetation communities with naturally simple structures should have the potential to achieve high scores on an index of structural complexity.¶ I proposed the following five-stage methodology for developing an index of stand structural complexity: 1. Establish a comprehensive suite of stand structural attributes as a starting point for developing the index, by reviewing studies in which there is an established relationship between elements of biodiversity and structural attributes. 2. Develop a measurement system for quantifying the different attributes included in the comprehensive suite. 3. Use this measurement system to collect data from a representative set of stands across the range of vegetation condition (highly modified to unmodified) and developmental stages (regrowth to oldgrowth) occurring in the vegetation communities in which the index is intended to operate. 4. Identify a core set of structural attributes from an analysis of these data. 5. Combine the core attributes in a simple additive index, in which attributes are scored relative to their observed levels in each vegetation community.¶ Stage one of this methodology was addressed by reviewing a representative sample of the literature concerning fauna habitat relationships in temperate Australian forests and woodlands. This review identified fifty-five studies in south-east and south-west Australia, in which the presence or abundance of different fauna were significantly (p<0.05) associated with vegetation structural attributes. The majority of these studies concerned bird, arboreal mammal, and ground mammal habitat requirements, with relatively fewer studies addressing the habitat requirements of reptiles, invertebrates, bats or amphibians. Thirty four key structural attributes were identified from these fifty-five studies, by grouping similar attributes, and then representing each group with a single generic attribute. This set, in combination with structural attributes identified in the earlier review, provided the basis for developing an operational set of stand level attributes for the collection of data from study sites.¶ To address stages two and three of the methodology, data were collected from one woodland community –Yellow Box-Red Gum (E. melliodora-E. Blakelyi ) – and two dry sclerophyll forest communities – Broadleaved Peppermint-Brittle Gum (E. dives-E. mannifera ), Scribbly Gum-Red Stringybark (E. rossii E. macrorhyncha ) – in a 15,000 km2 study area in the South eastern Highlands Bioregion of Australia. A representative set of 48 sites was established within this study area, by identifying 24 strata, on the basis of the three vegetation communities, two catchments, two levels of rainfall and two levels of condition, and then locating two sites (replicates) within each stratum. At each site, three plots were systematically established, to provide an unbiased estimate of stand level means for 75 different structural attributes.¶ I applied a three-stage analysis to identify a core set of attributes from these data. The first stage – a preliminary analysis – indicated that the 48 study sites represented a broad range of condition, and that the two dry sclerophyll communities could be treated as a single community, which was structurally distinct from the woodland community. In the second stage of the analysis, thirteen core attributes were dentified using the criteria that a core attribute should:¶ 1. Be either, evenly or approximately normally distributed amongst study sites; 2. Distinguish between woodland and dry sclerophyll communities; 3. Function as a surrogate for other attributes; 4. Be efficient to measure in the field. The core attributes were: Vegetation cover <0.5m Vegetation cover 0.5-6.0m; Perennial species richness; Lifeform richness; Stand basal area of live trees; Quadratic mean diameter of live stems; ln(number of regenerating stems per ha+1); ln(number of hollow bearing trees per ha+1);ln(number of dead trees per ha+1);sqrt(number of live stems per ha >40cm dbh); sqrt(total log length per ha); sqrt(total largelog length per ha); Litter dry weight per ha. This analysis also demonstrated that the thirteen core attributes could be modelled as continuous variables, and that these variables were indicative of the scale at which the different attributes operated.¶ In the third and final stage of the analysis, Principal Components Analysis was used to test for redundancy amongst the core attributes. Although this analysis highlighted six groupings, within which attributes were correlated to some degree, these relationships were not considered sufficiently robust to justify reducing the number of core attributes.¶ The thirteen core attributes were combined in a simple additive index, in which, each attribute accounted for 10 points in a total index value of 130. Attributes were rescaled as a score from 0-10, using equations that modelled attribute score as a function of the raw attribute data. This maintained a high correlation (r > 0.97, p< 0.0001) between attribute scores and the original attribute data. Sensitivity analysis indicated that the index was not sensitive to attribute weightings, and on this basis attributes carried equal weight. In this form my index was straightforward to apply, and approximately normally distributed amongst study sites.¶ I demonstrated the practical application of the index in a user-friendly spreadsheet, designed to allow landowners and managers to assess the condition of their vegetation, and to identify management options. This spreadsheet calculated an index score from field data, and then used this score to rank the site relative to a set of reference sites. This added a regional context to the operation of the index, and is a potentially useful tool for identifying sites of high conservation value, or for identifying sites where management actions have maintained vegetation quality. The spreadsheet also incorporated the option of calculating an index score using a subset of attributes, and provided a measure of the uncertainty associated with this score.¶ I compared the proposed index with five prominent indices used to quantify vegetation condition or habitat value in temperate Australian ecosystems. These were: Newsome and Catling’s (1979) Habitat Complexity Score, Watson et al.’s (2001) Habitat Complexity Score, the Site Condition Score component of the Habitat Hectares Index of Parkes et al. (2003), the Vegetation Condition Score component of the Biodiversity Benefits Index of Oliver and Parkes (2003), and the Vegetation Condition Score component of the BioMetric Assessment Tool of Gibbons et al. (2004). I found that my index differentiated between study sites better than each of these indices. However, resource and time constraints precluded the use of a new and independent data set for this testing, so that the superior performance of my index must be interpreted cautiously.¶ As a group, the five indices I tested contained attributes describing compositional diversity, coarse woody debris, regeneration, large trees and hollow trees – these were attributes that I also identified as core ones. However, unlike these indices, I quantified weeds indirectly through their effect on indigenous plant diversity, I included the contribution of non-indigenous species to vegetation cover and did not apply a discount to this contribution, I limited the direct assessment of regeneration to long-lived overstorey species, I used stand basal area as a surrogate for canopy cover, I quantified litter in terms of biomass (dry weight) rather than cover, and I included the additional attributes of quadratic mean diameter and the number of dead trees.¶ I also concluded that Parkes et al. (2003), Oliver and Parkes (2003), and Gibbons et al. (2004), misapplied the concept of benchmarking, by characterising attributes in terms of a benchmark range or average level. This ignored processes that underpin variation at the stand level, such as the increased development of some attributes at particular successional stages, and the fact that attributes can respond differently to disturbance agents. It also produced indices that were not particularly sensitive to the differences in attribute levels occurring between stands. I suggested that a more appropriate application of benchmarking would be at the overarching level of stand structural complexity, using a metric such as the index developed in this thesis. These benchmarks could reflect observed levels of structural complexity in unmodified natural stands at different successional stages, or thresholds for structural complexity at which a wide range of biota are present, and would define useful goals for guiding on-ground management.

The meiofauna of a mangrove forest in the River Barwon estuary was studied by means of surveys and field experiments. Distinctive assemblages of meiofauna were described from the sediment and pneumatophores of the ecosystem. Fine resolution of phytal habitats was demonstrated, and particular assemblages of meiofauna were characteristic within habitat provided by dominant epibionts. Distribution of the meiofauna within leaf litter revealed high turnover rates of nematodes, and some factors controlling detrital assemblages were assessed. The vertical profile of sedimentary meiofauna was examined, and changes in abundance were related to the tychopelagic habit of many taxa at high tide. Dispersal within the water column was confirmed by pelagic trapping, and colonisation of mimic pneumatophores was investigated. The amount of algal cover, effects of grazing by gastropods, and rugosity of the colonised surface were shown to influence meiofauna colonisation of mimic pneumatophores. Establishment and persistence of patchy distributions of meiofauna at scales of less than 10 m in an intertidal environment was demonstrated, and it was concluded that this was due to the dynamic nature of assemblages rather than their integrity.

Climate change will significantly affect avian biodiversity on a global scale. Increasing temperatures over the next century will lead to shifts in species distributions, alterations in the timing of breeding and migration, changes in morphology and shifts in genetic frequencies among avian populations. The global hotspots of avian diversity are found in mountainous rainforests, regions which may be difficult to access. Therefore, effective ways of monitoring rainforest bird assemblages are vital, for both ecologists and conservationists. This thesis addresses the challenge of monitoring the effects of climate change on rainforest bird assemblages. I used two methods, point counts and automated acoustic recording, to sample the rainforest birds occupying three elevational gradients in rainforests on the east coast of Australia. In doing so, I had the following aims: 1) to determine whether biodiversity data from automated acoustic recordings made using automated recording units (ARUs) was comparable to data generated using a traditional method (point counts), 2) to assess the ability of ARUs to monitor cryptic rainforest species for long time periods, 3) to identify birds that could be used as indicator species of elevation for the purpose of long-term climate change monitoring, and 4) to investigate the driving factors of bird species richness and abundance along elevational gradients in Australian rainforests. Existing studies showed contrasting results when comparing the effectiveness of traditional avian sampling methodologies with ARUs. To address this in an Australian rainforest context, we collected data on the birds of Eungella National Park in central Queensland over two sampling periods. We found that data from point counts and ARUs was broadly similar. On average, point counts detected more species than recordings of the same duration. The respective strengths and weaknesses of point counts and ARUs are complementary, and they should be used simultaneously in future biodiversity surveys. ARUs can sample remotely, simultaneously, and for long time periods. Using ARUs, we collected a year’s worth of data on two cryptic species inhabiting rainforest in north-eastern New South Wales. Bassian Thrush Zoothera lunulata and Russet-tailed Thrush Z. heinei are secretive inhabitants of wet forests on the eastern coast of Australia. We found that the two species had differential elevational preferences: Bassian Thrush preferred elevations above 900m asl, and Russet-tailed Thrush preferred elevations below 700m asl. Recordings of song indicated that Russet-tailed Thrush bred earlier than Bassian Thrush in 2015. This, along with the elevational preferences of the two species, may be related to temperature. The use of ARUs enabled us to quantify the elevational preferences and likely breeding times of these cryptic species. Populations of Bassian Thrush in north-eastern New South Wales and south-eastern Queensland are likely to decline with increasing temperatures. Upwards shifts in the elevational ranges of rainforest birds are expected due to increasing global temperatures. Identifying the current elevational distributions of indicator species has been suggested as one way of monitoring such upwards shifts. Previous research in our study region had identified indicator species among various invertebrate and plant taxa, but information on vertebrate indicators was lacking. Using data on the elevational preferences of birds collected over one year, we identified avian indicators of lowland and highland rainforest sites in north-eastern New South Wales. These indicators may be used to detect future shifts in species elevational preferences in the region. Previous research in tropical rainforests of the Wet Tropics identified temperature as an important driver of bird species’ distributions. There was a comparative lack of information for the subtropical rainforests of north-eastern New South Wales. Our data from elevational gradients in this region indicated that temperature was significantly positively correlated with both avian species richness and abundance. Species richness declined with elevation; there was no consistent elevational pattern in abundance. We found that species’ functional traits mediated their responses to the changes in environmental conditions along the gradient: large-bodied and small-bodied species are likely to be affected in different ways by increasing temperatures. My research has determined effective ways of monitoring the effects of climate change on rainforest bird assemblages. In doing so, I have also addressed major gaps in the knowledge of two relatively understudied biodiversity hotspots on the eastern coast of Australia. The baseline data presented in this thesis allows future researchers to detect changes in the avian biodiversity of the study regions, and represents a significant contribution to ornithology and climate change research in Australia and internationally.
Thesis (PhD Doctorate)
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
School of Environment and Sc
Science, Environment, Engineering and Technology
Full Text

Roads are primary agents of habitat fragmentation and transform landscapes on a global scale. Roads remove habitat and create barriers or filters to the movement of many wildlife species. Moreover, roads disrupt population processes by breaking up continuous populations into smaller, isolated subpopulations or metapopulations, which can suffer genetic drift and become more vulnerable to stochastic processes. Consequently, understanding and mitigating the impact of roads on wildlife has attracted increasing international interest in recent decades. Foremost in efforts to re-connect wildlife populations severed by roads has been the installation of crossing-structures. These are engineered structures designed to provide the opportunity for animals to safely cross either over the road (e.g. land-bridges, rope or wooden canopy-bridges) or under the road (e.g. underpasses, culverts, ecopipes). Crossing-structures enhance the permeability of roads to animal movement thereby improving the ‘functional connectivity’ of the surrounding landscape, or the degree to which the inter-fragment landscape (matrix) facilitates movement. Crossing-structures have thus become a common feature of new road projects in developed countries. Research into the efficacy of crossing-structures is very much in its infancy and has largely focused on assessing whether structures are being used by different wildlife species. As a consequence, we know very little about higher order questions pertaining to population processes, particularly whether the viability of local populations is enhanced by the deployment of crossing-structures. Furthermore, the deployment of crossing-structures has largely focused on terrestrial vertebrates and scant attention has been directed at mitigating road impacts on arboreal mammals, particularly gliding mammals (gliders). This thesis endeavours to address some of these information gaps by presenting the results of a number of investigations into wildlife use of road crossing-structures located in subtropical, eastern Australia. The topics of investigation include: i) glider use of wooden poles on a road land-bridge; ii) home-ranges of gliders residing near road crossing-structures; iii) modelling the effect of connecting habitat patches across road-gaps on glider metapopulation viability; and, vi) determining the effect of road widening on bandicoot use of highway underpasses. They represent the first studies of their kind to investigate such topics. The Australian squirrel glider Petaurus norfolcensis (Marsupialia: Diprotodontia) is a gliding marsupial distributed along the eastern seaboard of Australia. It is listed as threatened in the southern part of its geographic range due to habitat fragmentation. I investigated whether 7-m high wooden poles installed on a land-bridge could enable squirrel gliders to cross a road canopy-gap at two locations in Brisbane, the capital city of Queensland. This represented the first attempt in the world to facilitate road crossing by a gliding mammal in this way. At one location no road crossing was revealed from trapping over a 3-year period. Radio-tracking over 8 months revealed 3 occasions when animals whose home-ranges were aligned along the road had crossed the road. Hair-sampling devices revealed use of the poles at one location during 15 of 20 sampling sessions over a 3-year period, and at the second location during 6 of 6 sampling sessions over a 6-month period. Detection of hair on all poles during some sessions at both locations suggests complete crossings could occur. These observations suggest that wooden poles can be used to facilitate road-crossing by gliding mammals. Obtaining information on the use of novel road-crossing technologies such as gliding poles is a necessary first step to understanding their efficacy. However, the ultimate test of a crossing-structure’s effectiveness is in establishing to what extent has it alleviated the barrier effect of the road and prevented the extirpation of local populations. Accordingly, I utilised the population modelling program VORTEX to assess the viability of a metapopulation of squirrel gliders and Australia’s largest gliding marsupial, the greater glider (Petauroides volans), occurring in forest remnants in the fastest urbanising region of Australia. Population studies were conducted over two years within two of these forest remnants (one small, one large) connected across a major road by a land-bridge with gliding poles and rope canopy-bridges. Whereas I obtained direct evidence of squirrel glider use of the land-bridge poles, it is currently unknown whether greater gliders will use the crossing structures but available tree height and spacing do not allow a glide crossing and fences with metal flashing prevent access to the road by terrestrial and arboreal mammals. My modelling revealed that even a relatively low rate of dispersal facilitated by these structures would substantially reduce the probability of extirpation of the smaller subpopulation for both glider species. This rate of dispersal is plausible given the small distance involved (~50 m). The inclusion of wildfire as a catastrophe in my model suggests that these two remnants may encounter an undesirable level of extinction risk. This can be reduced to an acceptable level by including inter-patch movement via dispersal among other forest remnants. However, this requires connection to a very large remnant 8 km away, through a set of smaller remnants that straddle two motorways. These motorways create discontinuities in forest cover that are beyond the gliding ability of both these species and will require the deployment of crossing-structures to allow inter-patch movement. Whereas our knowledge of wildlife use of road crossing-structures has grown considerably in recent years, little is known about the effect that road widening may have on patterns of use by target fauna. To address this, I investigated the effect that duplicating a highway had on bandicoot (Marsupialia: Peramelemorphia) use of underpasses at Brunswick Heads in north east New South Wales (NSW). This study represented one of the first of its kind in Australia and spanned the period of pre and post-construction over an eight year period. Evidence from trapping data showed that individuals of the two bandicoot species present at the study site (i.e. Isoodon macrourus and Perameles nasuta) incorporated both sides of the road corridor into their home ranges and that the majority of movements were likely associated with foraging. The trapping data also demonstrated spatial overlap between and within sexes and congeners suggesting that underpasses were functionally available to resident animals and were each being used by multiple individuals. Despite this, gaining clear insights on the effect that road-widening had on underpass use by bandicoots was confounded by drought, loss of high quality habitat, a decline in bandicoot abundance, the presence of foxes and different design characteristics of new underpasses. Further surveys are required at Brunswick Heads to elucidate this issue. The results of my investigations on bandicoot and glider use of road crossing-structures provide strong support for the need to manage road impacts on wildlife at multiple scales. At the patch or site-level, a number of enhancements are required to improve the functionality of the investigated crossing-structures and to make the study sites more amenable to the target species. At the landscape-level, management needs to focus on improving functional connectivity in the surrounding landscape to strengthen the viability of local metapopulations. This will require the combination of habitat restoration works, wildfire control and the deployment of crossing structures where large roads and motorways breach forest cover. In the case of gliders, the deployment of crossing-structures can be achieved rapidly and cost-effectively by installing gliding poles along motorway edges and in median strips at locations where forest cover is breached. Future research at these study sites needs to continue for much longer periods (i.e. 5-10 years) and incorporate genetic techniques. This will assist in improving our understanding of the isolation effects of road barriers and whether or not gene flow is restored by the installation of crossing-structures. This should be routinely combined with viability assessments (e.g. PVA) to determine how populations are affected by roads and whether they might benefit from crossing structures. Research is also required to provide insights to dispersal behaviour, particularly for gliders, and the likely use of road-crossing structures. Loss of habitat and habitat connections is continuing in my study landscapes and this is likely to have dire consequences for wildlife if land managers are unable to retain appropriate habitat cover with corridors and install effective wildlife road crossing-structures where large roads bisect wildlife habitat.
Thesis (PhD Doctorate)
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Griffith School of Environment
Science, Environment, Engineering and Technology
Full Text

This thesis examines English immigration to eastern Australia between 1815 and 1860, dealing predominantly with the colonies of New South Wales and Victoria. I focus on the English because of their relative neglect in Australian immigration historiography, despite their being in the majority among the immigrants. I uncover evidence of origins, class, gender, motivation and culture. To provide a rounded picture of these immigrants, I use statistics and contemporary literary sources, principally correspondence, diaries and official and private archives, and compare the English immigrants in eastern Australia with English immigrants to the United States and with Scottish and Irish immigrants to New South Wales and Victoria in the same decades. To analyse the origins, motives and skills of the immigrants, I employ demographic data and case studies and examine separately immigrants with capital and assisted immigrants. Overwhelmingly, for both sets of immigrants, the motive was to seek material success in the colonies, faster than they believed they could at home. For the majority, this overcame scruples about the primitive state of the colonial societies and the taint of convictism. Land was a major attraction for many self-funded immigrants, who began to come into New South Wales in increasing numbers in the 1820s, initially mainly in family groups, but later larger numbers of single men were attracted to seek wealth prior to marriage. Many settled on the land as their primary source of income; others who came to practice in middle class professions were also keen to acquire town and country land for the status and wealth it promised, but lived and worked in urban areas. Chain migration was a common feature among middle class families in all decades. The gold rushes of the 1850s throw into stark relief the gambling element propelling so many people drawn from all but the poorest classes to chase fortunes. In the promotion of the Australian colonies to labouring people through government-assisted passages, the period 1831-1836 was experimental. I analyse the steps taken, the lessons learned and the background, motivations and skills of the English people attracted by this early scheme. Revised recruitment criteria were put into action in 1837 and I examine a profile of the assisted immigrants from a one in sixty sample from that year to 1860. This longitudinal study shows that, despite contemporary and subsequent criticisms of the quality of the assisted immigrants, they fitted the categories demanded by the colonists and predominantly came from regions of England suffering economic decline. To examine the culture and values of the English immigrants, I develop an extended case study of one family over two generations and analyse key themes emerging from the private papers of a cross-section of people. These two perspectives illustrate the contribution English immigrants made to the culture in eastern Australia and show how many of them maintained contact with family in England over a long period, while engaging actively in their new society.

Wood identification can serve a role wherever wood has been separated from other diagnostic plant structures as a result of cultural or taphonomic processing. In disciplines that study material culture, such as museum anthropology and art history, it may serve to augment and verify existing knowledge, whilst in fields like palaeobotany, zoology and archaeology, wood identification may test existing paradigms of ecology and human behaviour. However, resources to aid wood identification, particularly of non - commercial species, are sorely lacking and, in Australia, there are only a handful of xylotomists, most of whom are attached to Forestry organisations. In addition, wood fragments are commonly the limit of material available for identification. They may be the physical remains of a wider matrix - as may often appear in biological, archaeological, palaeobotanical or forensic contexts - or a splinter removed from an ethnographic artefact or antique. This research involved the development of an updateable, interactive, computer - based identification tool to the wood of 58 arid Australian species. The identification tool comprises a series of keys and sub - keys to reflect the taxonomic hierarchies and the difficulty of separating wood beyond family or genus. The central Sub - key to Arid Australian Hardwood Taxa is comprised of 20 angiosperm taxa which include families and single representatives of genera. The treated taxa in this key are defined by 57 separate characters. They are split into sets of like characters including four sets based upon method of examination : anatomical ( scanning electron microscopy ), anatomical ( light microscopy ), chemical observations and physical properties. These character sets follow a logical progression, in recognition of the variability in available sample size and that noninvasive techniques are often desirable, if not essential. The use of character sets also reflects that this variability in sample size can affect the range of available characters and the available method of identification, and their diagnostic potential tends to increase with the complexity of the identification method. As part of the research, the identification tool is tested against wood fragments removed from several Aboriginal Australian artefacts from central Australia and case studies are provided.
Thesis (Ph.D.)--School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, 2005.

University of Technology, Sydney. Faculty of Science.
In the last 100 years there have been dramatic declines in the range and abundance of native freshwater fish in south-eastern Australia. These declines have been attributed to habitat loss and degradation (including river regulation, water quality, erosion/siltation, instream cover and riparian vegetation), alien fish species, overfishing, and the obstruction of fish passage. In south-eastern Australia there are 86 species of freshwater fish and 36 of these have some migratory component of their life history that requires free passage along streams. The migrations of these fish in this region have been inhibited or prevented by the existence of more than 1500 dams and weirs. To mitigate this impact there are only 69 fishways. Most of these fishways are based on designs suitable for the swimming ability and behaviour of salmonids from the Northern Hemisphere. There are, however, no native salmonids in Australia. I assessed one of these salmonid fishways, at Euston on the Murray River, for its suitability for passing native fish. Fish were trapped at the top and bottom of the fishway over eight paired days. Although this fishway has one of the lowest slopes of the older fishways, and therefore potentially one of the easiest to ascend, very few of the fish that entered the fishway could get to the top. For example, 777 +/- 238 [x +/- s.e.] golden perch (Macquaria ambigua) per day entered the fishway but only 4 +/- 2 per day were collected at the top of the fishway. This and other data highlighted two points: i) the ineffectiveness of the salmonid-type fishways for native fish; and ii) assessing fishways by counting fish at the top only, although widely used throughout the world, is insufficient to assess the performance of a fishway. Counts of fish from the top of a fishway can, however, be useful to monitor fish populations over time. An excellent example of this is provided by long-term monitoring of the Euston fishway, which shows massive declines in the upstream movements of silver perch (Bidyanus bidyanus), Murray cod (Maccullochella peelii peelii) and Macquarie perch (Macquaria australasica) between 1940-45 and 1987-90, indicating corresponding declines in the populations of these species. The failure of salmonid fishways for non-salmonid fishes has been a common experience throughout the world. It stems partly from a lack of knowledge of the migratory patterns of non-salmonid fish, and from a lack of quantitative experimental research into the swimming ability and behaviour of these fish in fishways. To redress this situation for south-eastern Australia, I tested fish in experimental fishways in a hydraulics laboratory. The fishway design tested was the vertical-slot fishway, which is a pool-type fishway where water flows between each pool via a vertical slot. The design was considered to potentially suit the hydrology of Australian rivers and the behaviour of native fish. For these experiments I selected fish species and life stages representative of the migratory fish fauna of the two major drainages of south-eastern Australia. For the south-eastern coastal rivers I chose juvenile Australian bass (Macquaria novemaculeata)[mean lengths of 40, 64 and 93 mm] and barramundi (Lates calcarifer) [43 mm]. These two species are catadromous, with the adults migrating downstream to the estuary to breed and the juveniles migrating upstream. For the large inland Murray-Darling river system I chose adult golden perch (Macquaria ambigua) [441 mm] and silver perch(Bidyanus bidyanus) [258 mm]. At the beginning of this study, adults of these two species were considered to be the main life stage migrating upstream. In the laboratory experiments fish were tested at different water velocities and probit analysis was applied to the proportion of fish that negotiated these velocities. I used this approach to produce values which I called the NV90 and the NV95, which are the maximum water velocities that 90% and 95% of the fish could negotiate in the fishway. For bass, barramundi and golden perch these values ranged from 0.7 to 1.8 m s-1. These values are well below the standard maximum water velocity for salmonid fishways of 2.4 m s-l. The silver perch results were too variable to analyse. The data obtained from the laboratory experiments were used by water resource agencies to build eight new vertical-slot fishways in coastal and inland rivers of southeastern Australia. One of the largest of these new fishways was at Torrumbarry Weir on the Murray River, which consists of 38 pools, each 3 m long, ascending a 6.5 m high weir. The fishway, if successful, would provide access to 350 km of habitat above the weir. To determine whether or not the fishway was successful in passing native migratory fish it was assessed for 2.5 years by: i) sampling monthly above and below the fishway with a standard set of independent, replicated nets; and ii) sampling within the fishway. The netting showed that there were major aggregations of migratory fish below the weir when the fishway was not operational. However, when the fishway was completed and operational, 13 months after the commencement of sampling, there were no further major aggregations of migratory fish below the weir. These data, combined with high numbers of fish successfully ascending the fishway, indicated the success of this vertical-slot fishway design. It was estimated that from February 1991 to June 1993 20,7 14 native fish and 16,595 alien fish (all carp [Cyprinus carpio]) had successfully ascended the fishway. Sampling at the top and bottom of the fishway showed that the fishway passed almost all the species and sizes classes of native migratory fish, except for Australian smelt (Retropinna semoni). The latter is a small species 15 to 40 mm long that only entered the lower few pools of the fishway. The widespread distribution of this species indicates the migration is facultative. Experiments within the fishway showed that the laboratory experiments had underestimated swimming ability. However, it was discovered that fish still needed over 1.5 hours to ascend the full length of the fishway. In addition, some species only migrated upstream during daylight and if their ascent of the fishway was not completed in daylight the fish moved back down the fishway. I concluded that the original water velocity criterion from the laboratory experiments was appropriate and that future fishways need to consider ascent time and fishway length as well as water velocity. I also concluded that it is more difficult to obtain realistic results from 'off-site' experiments, where fish are transported to a laboratory or other facility, than from in situ experiments where naturally migrating fish are used and are not handled until the end of the experiment. Sampling at Torrumbarry Weir provided detailed information on the biology of the migratory fish species, which is essential to designing effective fishways. Carp(Cyprinus carpio), an introduced or alien species, and bony herring were newly identified as migratory, and golden perch and silver perch were confirmed as migratory. A major finding was that 95% of golden perch and 87% of silver perch moving upstream were immature fish. Previously the upstream movement of immature fish in this river system was considered insignificant. Fortunately the conservative water velocities in the Torrumbarry fishway accommodated these smaller fish(approximately 100 to 300 mm in length). The reason for the large numbers of immature fish migrating upstream is not clear, but it may be to optimise feeding, enhance colonisation, or to compensate for the downstream drift of the pelagic eggs and larvae. Migration of all species was seasonal. Spring, summer and early autumn were the main periods of upstream movement for native fish, and carp moved upstream in spring and early summer. Migration of carp was stimulated by rising water temperature only, but golden perch and silver perch were stimulated to move upstream by small changes in river levels. This small scale variation in streamflow is frequently suppressed by river regulation, and this is likely to have contributed to the significant decrease in the numbers of migrating native fish. Upstream migration of all species often occurred during low flows, as well as higher flows. This also occurs in coastal rivers of southeastern Australia. For both the coastal and inland rivers of this region it will be important to design fishways and environmental flow releases to accommodate this aspect of fish migration and the often semi-arid hydrology of these streams. Golden perch and silver perch were aged using sagittal otoliths and validated using known-age fish. The data showed that the immature fish were all over one year old, suggesting that younger fish are not migrating upstream. More research is needed to determine the location and habitats of the less than one year old fish. Ageing and examination of gonads indicated the size and age at maturity for these fish. This suggested that minimum size limits currently used to regulate the recreational fishery are not allowing fish to reach maturity. Golden perch and silver perch were found to be long-lived fish, up to 26 and 27 years respectively. Interestingly, samples of these two species from other rivers within the Murray-Darling river system show that the maximum sizes of these fish can vary significantly between rivers, suggesting that the ecology of different rivers within this large river system varies considerably. The development of fishways for non-salmonid fishes throughout the world has frequently met with failure. From the work in the present study and from reviewing other work I suggest there are five steps for the development of effective fishways. 1. Determine which fish species are migratory: - it is important to identify the smallest and largest fish that are migratory, as this affects the initial choice of the size of the fishway to test. 2. Test fish in an experimental fishway: - in situ experiments are recommended; - avoid handling of fish before and during experiments. 3 Design the fishway: - first decide on the location of the fishway entrance; - extrapolate research results with caution; - do not reduce pool sizes from the experimental model; - avoid tunnels; - design the fishway to operate over the full range of flows during which fish migrate. 4. Link the fishway with the operation of the dam or weir: - maintain flow and temperature regimes that stimulate migration; - manage flow releases over the spillway to guide fish to the fishway entrance. 5. Assess the fishway: - use quantitative and relevant performance criteria to assess the fishway and not only counts of fish from the top of the fishway. The most common strategy in the past has been to design the fishway and ignore steps 1, 2, 4 and 5. With fishways being increasingly recognised as important tools in the rehabilitation of aquatic biota in temperate river systems, and as a potential tool in the development of water resources in tropical rivers, it is essential that they are appropriately designed, constructed, and assessed. Otherwise the mistakes of the past will very likely be repeated.