Kevin Thiele, The University of Western Australia y Jane Melville, Museums Victoria Research Institute
After more than 300 years of effort, scientists have documented fewer than one-third of Australia’s species. The remaining 70% are unknown, and essentially invisible, to science.
Planting trees can sometimes be a carbon-offset box-ticking exercise, but reforestation is a long-term commitment that supports communities, promotes biodiversity and tackles the climate emergency.
When something is free, people use a lot of it. Economists are urging governments to compute values for natural resources – wildlife, plants, air, water – to create motives for protecting them.
Research into fox scents suggests a complex form of ‘chemical communication’ underlies the animal’s behaviour. The findings could help improve pest control methods and protect native wildlife.
The fynbos vegetation that historically clothed the slopes of Table Mountain is highly inflammable. This has been worsened by the spread of alien trees that burn more intensely than the fynbos.
Madagascar stands out as an exceptionally interesting place in which to study the evolution of “mini” creatures. And we are only just starting to scratch the surface of this.
Matthew Flinders Professor of Global Ecology and Models Theme Leader for the ARC Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage, Flinders University