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Barcoding Wasps: Using DNA to Quickly Discover and Document Species
Guest post by Adelaide University PHD Student Erinn Peta Fagan-Jefferies There are a predicted 600,000 species of plant and animal in Australia, but only 30% have been formally documented and named. Taxonomy, the science of describing new species, is normally a slow process – but with so many species waiting to be documented, can we somehow […]
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Guest Blog: Josie Hyde is studying Freshwater microfauna – in the desert
Josephine Hyde is a PhD candidate at the Environment Institute’s Australian Centre for Evolutionary Biology and Biodiversity (@DNArthropods). Josie has written an exclusive guest post for the Environment Institute blog on her research of microfauna in very isolated habitats in remote WA published in Marine and Freshwater Research. Studying freshwater animals may seem like a weird […]
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Children’s University: Erinn Fagan-Jeffries
Children’s University Australia is an International arm of the program which focuses on giving children aged 7-14 experience outside their classrooms. It is an outreach initiative of the University of Adelaide and it encourages children to think outside the box with learning experiences at locations across the state including the State Library, SA Museum and […]
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Prof Andy Austin is interviewed by Amanda Vanstone on ABC RN’s Counterpoint
Professor Andy Austin was interviewed by Amanda Vanstone on the ABC RN show “Counterpoint”, as a result of the recent press coverage which featured in USA Today, which has a daily readership of 7 million. Prof Austin spoke about his recent PLoS One, led by PhD candidate Sophie Harrison which challenges the previous theory the spiders arrived in Australia. Genetic analysis […]
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Trap door spider “great ocean journey” gets worldwide press coverage
A paper published in PLOS One today by PhD candidate Sophie Harrison and Professor Andy Austin today tells the origin story of Trapdoor Spider’s arrival in Australia. This new paper challenges the previous theory the spiders arrived in Australia during the break up of the supercontinent Gondwana 95 million years ago. However, the genetic analysis conducted […]
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Media Release: Trapdoor spiders crossed Indian Ocean to get to Australia
An Australian trapdoor spider, which usually moves no further than a couple of metres from where it was hatched, must have travelled to Australia over the Indian Ocean from South Africa, University of Adelaide research has shown. Found only on Kangaroo Island off the coast of South Australia, the trapdoor spider – Moggridgea rainbow – […]
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Guest Post: Two new species of Parasitic Wasps described!
Identifying, describing and giving names to new species is the art and science of taxonomy. It may seem trivial, but the more we know about how many species there are and how they differ from each other, the better we can conserve, protect and utilise the environment around us. Choeras is a genus of parasitoid […]
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Fossil find uncovers our ancient past
The ancient history of Earth is always fascinating. The fossil record shows creatures that once roamed, habitats that are now lost and describe an Earth that is both foreign and familiar. Research that uncovers more about our ancient land are compelling, like the latest from Dr Diego Garcia-Bellido. Garcia-Bellido and co-workers uncovered fossils in South Australia, […]
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Publication: Tracking changes of spiny trapdoor spiders
Australia’s arid zone has spread throughout history, and has had a transformative impact on many species. New research has investigated the evolutionary history of spiny trapdoor spiders, in response to changes in Australia’s arid environment. Published in Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, and co-authored by the Environment Institute’s Professor Andy Austin, the paper has been ranked as […]
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Research illuminates light adaptation in insects
Perception of light is one of the most important developments in animal history. Eyes appeared relatively late on the sensory scene but had immediate impact. A new publication explores the role of light-environments in the adaptation and development of biological characteristics. Published in Austral Entomology by lead author Dr Simon Tierney, this review focuses on insects […]
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