The 2009 Paddy Pallin Foundation Science Grant has been awarded to Pia Lentini, the Fenner School of Environment and Society, Australian National University, Canberra. Below is a brief description of her project.

"The conservation value of the Travelling Stock Route network in New South Wales"

 Since European settlement, the ‘wheat-sheep belt' of New South Wales has been cleared of much of its original woodland and grassland vegetation to allow for the establishment of agricultural production. Travelling Stock Routes (TSRs) are extensive corridors of vegetation that were gazetted prior to clearing to facilitate the droving of stock to markets and other pastures. Unlike the lands which form the NSW protected area estate, many TSRs traverse low-lying and productive areas, and comprise several threatened ecological communities, such as critically endangered grassy box woodlands, which are poorly represented in the protected area system.

TSRs provide essential habitat for woodland and grassland fauna, as well as vital connectivity to allow migration and dispersal. They will become increasingly important as climate change drives species out of their historical ranges. Additionally, TSRs act as refuges for many native and rare plant species and assemblages, and help to maintain genetic diversity and locally-adapted subspecies. In spite of this, almost no published scientific work has been carried out that specifically investigates the ecological communities contained within TSRs, and how biota interact with and benefit surrounding agriculture. Recent changes to the management of the network could see portions of ‘lesser conservation value' sold off or leased, so my research aims to fill in some of the key knowledge gaps that are preventing TSR managers from making evidence-based informed decisions as to how this issue should be approached.

My project will consist of wildlife and vegetation surveys carried out both within and adjacent to the stock routes in the agricultural landscape of the central-west and south-west slopes of NSW. I hope to determine not only how biota use the stock routes, but also whether landscape context and surrounding land use impacts on both the habitat value of the routes and the ways in which animals move through and around them. This information will then be used to help prioritise sections of the network which should be protected or earmarked for restoration, using spatial optimisation tools. By managing the network in an informed manner, we have the opportunity to protect some of the last quality remnants of box woodlands and the species they support, as well as large-scale connectivity across the state of NSW.

 To dowload a progress report from Pia click here.  (500kb)

  *          *           *

 The 2008 Paddy Pallin Foundation Science Grant has been awarded to Rachael Gallagher, Plant Ecology Researcher, Department of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, NSW   2109.  Below is a brief description of her project.

  The ecology of climbing plants in littoral rainforests of eastern Australia

Climbing plants are among the most familiar features of rainforest plant communities, yet surprisingly little is known about the ecology of this important group, particularly in a subtropical Australian context. Historically, progress in the research of climbing plants has been hampered by the poor perception of this functional group in the forestry industry, and by the logistical difficulties associated with data collection in the field.

 The field work component of my PhD focuses on the species composition and traits of native and exotic climbing plants in endangered littoral rainforest communities in eastern Australia. Owing to their proximity to the coast, littoral rainforests are often shorter in height and structurally less complex than their inland subtropical counterparts. Nevertheless, littoral rainforests harbour a high diversity of climbing plant species, making them an ideal community in which to study vine dynamics.

 The extent of littoral rainforest has been dramatically reduced by coastal development and sand mining, and it is presently found only in small, fragmented patches dotted along the coast. Fortunately, these areas are now protected under NSW and Federal environmental legislation. That relatively little research concerning littoral rainforest has been undertaken is, however, a potential impediment to its continued conservation. Increasing our knowledge of littoral rainforest through an understanding of climbing plant dynamics, and thus contributing to the conservation of this unique community is my motivation as a researcher.

 The primary aim of my research is to quantify differences in climbing plant traits and species composition along a minimum temperature gradient in subtropical Australia. Ecological strategies of native and non-native climbing plants will be compared along the gradient to assess the role of climate in structuring climbing plant communities. These findings will be used in conjunction with species distribution modeling to estimate the effect on climbing plant species of projected changes in climate in Eastern Australia. Understanding the response of climbing plants to anthropogenically induced climate change is critical for predicting the impact of compositional changes upon the integrity of littoral rainforest.

  >   For more information on Rachael visit her website

> To view Rachael's September 2009 progress report click here