Biosecurity research efforts will be well funded in Australia

News just out - the Plant Biosecurity Cooperative Research Centre (CRC) has won its rebid, second time lucky!  Here is a link to the previous, related, CRC for National Plant Biosecurity for whom I spent 2 years working as a post-doc.  Alongside CSIRO's new Biosecurity Flagship, funding support for research into Biosecurity in Australia has never been stronger, exciting times.

 

A meta-analysis of the impacts of alien plants

Our latest review is of a meta-analysis that examines a wide range of studies from across the globe (including invasive animals, as well as plants) to try and identify some general impacts invasive species have on species, communities and ecosystems.

Vilà, M., Espinar, J. L., Hejda, M., Hulme, P. E., Jarošík, V., Maron, J. L., Pergl, J., Schaffner, U., Sun, Y. and Pyšek, P. (2011), Ecological impacts of invasive alien plants: a meta-analysis of their effects on species, communities and ecosystems. Ecology Letters, 14: 702–708. doi: 10.1111/j.1461-0248.2011.01628.x

Our Review: Parry H, Lonsdale M: 2011. F1000.com/13365971

This comprehensive meta-analysis of over 500 articles illuminates some key future research directions for the ecology of alien plant introductions. The authors draw some conclusions on the general relative impacts of alien plants on ecosystems. These impacts range from species, through community, up to ecosystem-level, including changes in nutrient levels and cycling.

What is this blog about?

Well, I created a word cloud using Wordle to tell you!
(if you click the picture below you will see it more clearly)

A global experiment in biogeography

I am continuing to assist Dr Lonsdale and review for F1000 after all!  The last few months there seems to have been an absolute flurry of decent articles on invasion ecology, so we have carefully waded through to try and pick out some gems.  This review is really a review of a special issue rather than a single article, with an entire issue of Diversity and Distributions dedicated to that global wanderer, the Acacia.  This showcases a diverse range of excellent studies on the acacia from across the globe.

Human-mediated introductions of Australian acacias – a global experiment in biogeography.  
Richardson, D. M., Carruthers, J., Hui, C., Impson, F. A. C., Miller, J. T., Robertson, M. P., Rouget, M., Le Roux, J. J. and Wilson, J. R. U. (2011) Diversity and Distributions, 17: 771–787.
DOI: 10.1111/j.1472-4642.2011.00824.x

Our review: Parry H, Lonsdale M: 2011. F1000.com/13357278

This is the leading article for a special issue of ‘Diversity and Distributions’ that focuses on the global movement of Australian acacia species and their invasiveness. The paper is important in establishing the case that acacias are a powerful model for testing some fundamental ideas in invasion ecology, which subsequent articles in the issue go on to do. 

Post-docs ahoy!

I received this advert for some post-doc positions that have come up in New Zealand that may be of interest:

Three Post Doctoral fellowships are now available in the Bio-Protection Research Centre (www.bioprotection.org.nz) working with Profs. Phil Hulme and Richard Duncan. The Post Doctoral fellows will join an active research group focused on the ecology of plant invasions, which has strong international linkages and a focus on high quality scientific publications. The Post Doctoral fellow will undertake independent research as well as contributing to wider research through interactions with staff and postgraduate students in the plant invasions group.  Funding commences 1 February 2012. 

The three fellowships available are: